Here and There

 God is here. God is ever present, omnipotent, and omniscient. God created time and then stepped into time. There is not a day or night that God is not in, from the rising sun in our east to the setting of the same each evening in our western skyline. The Bible tells us that God is an ever present help in our time of need (Psalm 46:1), but God is also with us wherever we happen to find ourselves, "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast." Psalm 139:7-10. The evidence is clear to me, even His name Emmanuel signifies this fact, "God with us". That truth was part of my morning prayers today. We can't go anywhere that God isn't already there, but the question I sought an answer to in my prayers today was, "God is here, but am I there?"

How is it possible to not be with God if He is always "here" with us? How can God be with each and every person at the same exact time regardless of where you are and where everyone else is? I may not be able to scientifically explain that, but I will share with you that our God is not like us, we can't place God in any context where we are comparing God to our human existence. God is with us (Isaiah 41:10), each of us (Matthew 28:20), and that is just the way it is (Hebrews 13:5). God's existence with us in our day to day walk is not connected directly to a time of need, although David wrote "I will fear no evil, for You are with me, Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me" Psalm 23:4. We find comfort and peace knowing that God is with us when we face challenges. God is near to the broken-hearted (Psalm 34:18) and God's love for us endures forever, (Psalm 136). My advice is to not attempt to compartmentalize God. Calling on God in our times of need is expected, yet if we truly develop and nurture a relationship with God, we will come to an understanding that God is with us, all of us. The problem isn't that God is distant from us, but more that we are not "there" with God. 

If God is "here", then how can it be that we could possibly not be "there" with God? If God is omnipresent in our lives, wouldn't that mean that it is not possible to not be "there" with God, right? Therein lies our dilemma. God gives us free will, thus we choose whether we will be "there" with God. A story about two devout followers of Jesus serves this idea well. Sisters, Mary and Martha, were super excited that Jesus was coming to their home to teach, preach, and eventually dine with those gathered. I'm sure they spent much of the day preparing their home, sweeping the floors, straightening up the furnishings, and most likely cooking right up to His arrival. After Jesus arrived, Martha continued to clean and cook, while Mary stopped what she was doing and sat intently at the feet of Jesus eager to hear what He would say. Martha became irritated that Mary wasn't helping her and vented her frustration to Jesus. What Jesus replied provides merit to the idea of being "there" when He is "here". "Martha, Martha, the Lord answered, you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed - or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." Luke 10:31-42. Both Mary and Martha believed that Jesus was the Son of God, both were excited that Jesus was coming to their home, both wanted to be near Him, but only Mary made the decision to stop what she wanted to do, and to do what was the right thing to do. Martha was in the room, but due to her choice to be too busy to sit down and listen to Jesus, she in essence wasn't really "there" with Jesus even though He was sitting in their home. Martha could have said "Jesus is here, so that is where I want to be, right there with Him." Instead Martha chose to be too busy and missed out on the one thing that Mary received, guidance and teaching from the Son of God. 

We started our time together today with a verse from Psalm 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble." Taken in context with our story about Mary and Martha this psalm could have served as a guidebook for the two sisters. Martha needed to pick up on what Mary already knew, God is ever-present, basically saying why do we need to worry ourselves so much with cleaning and cooking to prepare for Jesus to arrive. God, His Son Jesus, and God's Holy Spirit our triennial Creator is with us always, He is "here" we must make the decision to be "there" with Him. Later in the same psalm, God tells David to "Be still and know that I am God" Psalm 46:10. What I hear God saying is plain and clear, "I am ever-present, be still and be with Me". 

"Be still and know that I am God", when we stop trying to handle life on our own and we allow God to "direct our steps" Proverbs 16:9, then we can say that we are "there"with God, because God is always "here" with us and for us. When you need to hear from God, He is there, tuck in close to Him and allow His word to fill your heart, mind, and soul. I want to leave you with this one truth. God is with you, God is here. You must decide will you be there with Him? I choose God.

Coach Carter