“God is here.” 

Those are more than three comforting words. They are the truth. Israel had already seen God deliver them from Egypt, part the Red Sea, and provide manna and quail. Yet when they arrived at Rephidim and found no water, fear and frustration brought them to the question: “Is the LORD among us or not?”  

In this Gospel Centered message, Pastor Ann reminds us that we can ask the same question when the diagnosis comes, the phone rings with bad news, the money is not enough, the answer does not come, or life simply does not make sense. But the absence of something we desperately need does not mean the absence of God.  God was there at Rephidim before the water ever flowed, and when the people grumbled, God did not abandon them. He provided water from the rock, pointing us ultimately to Jesus Christ, our Rock and the Source of Living Water, Who still cries out: “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.” — John 7:37  This is the good news: The Father has not left us to find our own way. He has given us His Son, Jesus Christ, and through the Holy Spirit He remains present with us, even in our driest places. 

Jesus promised, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.” And He promised that the Father would give us the Holy Spirit, Who would “be with you forever.”  So when circumstances tempt us to ask, “God, where are You?” the Gospel answers: God is here. He is here when we see the provision and when we do not. He is here when we feel His presence and when we do not. He is here in the waiting. He is here in the wilderness. He is here before the water comes.  

As Dietrich Bonhoeffer expressed it: “I’m here whether we see Jesus or not, feel him or not, want him or not—none of this makes any difference over against the fact that Jesus is here with us.”  

REFLECTIVE MOMENT What “Rephidim” are you facing right now? Has what you cannot see caused you to forget the God Who is already there? Before looking somewhere else for what only God can give, hear His invitation again: Come to Jesus and drink. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your eyes and heighten your awareness of the Father’s faithful presence. God has not forgotten you. God has not left you. God is here.  

Watch the full message, and be reminded that our circumstances may change, our feelings may change, and what we can see may change, but the Triune God Who is with us does not.