God Is Always With Me

Dielka Munoz

Santo Domingo Church of Christ

Psalm 42

This psalm deeply touches my heart because it takes me back to the first time in my life where I felt that great need for God. I knew that he was what my soul needed to be at peace.

From a very young age my health was weak. As a teen I lived very fearful of the situation, the uncertainty of what would happen to my health scared me. I understood that I needed God, that He was what I needed to be happy and I invoked him with tears. I remember sitting in the bathroom and crying to God, I prayed with tears and I promised him that I would really look for him this time. He listened to my cry and answered me. Very soon after that a friend at my campus invited me to the Church of Christ in Santo Domingo and my life was changed after that. I was greatly impacted by the love of the Church and studying the Bible in a way that really connected me to God.  I had always looked for God but in my own way. Yet, this time I had finally found the connection and relationship with God I had constantly searched; I found it in the Cross of Christ!  I became a disciple of Christ and I have not since regretted that decision.

I always feel that God close to me. I know that He is there.  He speaks to me through his words, they reach my mind and heart almost with an audible voice. God corrects me and his Holy Spirit directs me. When I pray I know that he listens to me, because I see his power in my life.

God sustains me; he gives me strength even in the midst of pain, disappointment and loss.

His hand grabs me and helps me walk, sometimes he has to drag me and other times he lifts my feet and carries me. I am moving forward but always with the strength that comes from my God.  So I want to briefly share with you the main things that have helped me  maintain close to God despite life’s adversities.

1.        Gaining Strength through his Word

John 1:1 says that the word of God has been here from the beginning and that Word is Jesus. Through Jesus we are satisfied with the best, he is the Word, the Word that heals us and frees us from death. Only through Gods Word can we really know him, see his promises and be filled with faith. The Word connects us with God and fills us with the wisdom that only comes from Him. In John 6:68 Peter says His words are words of eternal life. Psalm 107:20 reminds us that the Word will lift us up, restore and heal us when we are down and your faith is falling. The word will rescue us and straighten your thoughts.

2.         Letting myself be guided by his Holy Spirit (Romans 8:22-27, 2 Corinthians 1:22)

The trials or situations we have should not separate us from God and his word. What we must do is cling to his Word and his Holy Spirit, which we receive as a guarantee of what is to come and what is to come is much greater and glorious than we can imagine.

God, our Lord, knew that we were going to suffer. Pain is part of our training but if we pray for his Spirit to guide us, it will give us the strength and hope we need to keep fighting.

I have had to fight many battles in my spiritual walk.  I have felt the great grief that comes from the loss of a child, the disappointment of a marriage that after much trying ended in divorce and the loss of intimate friends. Believe me, my heart has broken into pieces. My mind has fought with “why me?”…  Yet there comes a point where I have had to decide to believe that I have his Holy Spirit and that God is with me even in those moments of pain.

Many times I have thought "Is it worth continuing to fight?" and his Spirit tells me: “YES! Do not to lose heart”.   It reminds me that Jesus suffered all kinds of trials, but he still stood firm until he died on a cross for obeying God.

In Romans 8: 26 the Bible says that we do not know how to pray, but the Holy Spirit of God intercedes with unspeakable words for us and God examines our hearts. Do not let your heart be filled with doubts, resentment, desire to take revenge; all of these will impede God’s blessing   and work in your life. The word says that when you are weak, the Holy Spirit enters and gives you the help you need to continue and be victorious. I have gone through those times in my life where I know only the power of God could have gotten me through and thus allowed me to be victorious.

3.  Understanding that I am here only by his grace and that I do not deserve anything.

John 3:16 says that God gave us his only son for the forgiveness of our sins. I am a sinner, but the one who paid for me was Jesus and he suffered unjustly on the cross. Therefore, I must be grateful and happy. When I go through pain or disappointment in my life, I reflect on the fact that Jesus suffered much more than me and that gives me strength and lifts me up.

Believe me, sometimes I feel that it is God himself who lifts me up, because my strength is on the ground. Focusing on Jesus and not on yourself gives you strength.

And Finally… Romans 8:38-39 reminds me that there is nothing in this world that can separate me from his love and mercy.  My God, my holy father is always with me.

God didn't promise us it would be easy, but we can see his love and compassion.

Never doubt his love for you!

Love from your sister in Christ

Dielka Munoz

Santo Domingo Church of Christ