The Coronavirus has us all on edge. Cruises are out. Sneezes and coughs are suspect. Even handshakes are being reconsidered.
The thought occurred to me that we could stop this thing cold if we all avoided contact with everyone. If we completely isolated ourselves from one another and became total hermits–absolute recluses.
But is that even living? God has made us relational beings. Something in us begins to shrivel up and die if we are left all alone. Isn’t that why solitary confinement is reserved as one of the severest punishments for prisoners? Isn’t that why going-crazy Tom Hanks begins a relationship with his volleyball friend Wilson in the movie Castaway?
Perhaps the relational component is one reason the Lord’s promise in Joshua 1:5 is so compelling: I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. For there is not a more debilitating despondency or crushing loneliness than when God removes His presence.
For that reason, over and over again in Scripture the Lord assures us of His presence:
- I am with you always, even to the end of the age (Mt 28:20).
- My presence shall go with you (Ex 33:14).
- Don’t be afraid, for I am with you (Is 41:10).
Highest heaven, deepest sea, and darkest night cannot overpower His presence (Ps 139). The Lord Jesus even goes so far as to name Himself Immanuel (“God with us”) and to reside within us in the person of the Holy Spirit. His point is clear: in this difficult life–and it certainly is difficult!–absolutely nothing can separate us from Him (Rom 8:35-39).
But it gets even better! Jesus will soon usher us from this life’s difficulties into His glorious presence: “I will come again and take you to be with Me, so that where I am you may be, too” (Jn 14:3). As rich as His unseen presence is now, it pales in comparison to what we will soon experience when we are in His visible presence!
We’ll see Him as He is and we’ll be transformed and made like Him! Everything awful flees away–tears, death, and evil! Peace and harmony and order arrive in fullest measure. Consider just how much revolves around His presence! Lonely won’t even be in our vocabulary!
Thank You, Lord Jesus, for Your promise to be with us. I choose to live today in the conscious awareness of Your presence as Your thankful, consecrated, and hope-filled servant.