Living With Purpose
While traveling through the southeastern state of Virginia recently, I stopped in a quaint little town for lunch. It was a small town with an easy-going spirit. It reminded me of my home town of Jay because of the neighborly friendliness. Even the attendant at the local gas station had a happy face. I bypassed the typical fast-food chains for lunch and opted for a little restaurant called the “Farmer’s Café”. A sign above the front door said, “Come enjoy some country cookin’!” So, I did. After a satisfying meal I went to the front of the building to pay. A family stood up to leave at the same time as me and a little girl, probably 4-5 years-old, jumped up from their table and beat me to the cashier. As I prepared to pay, the waitress asked the little girl jokingly, “So, where’s your money? You have to pay for your food too. It’s not free!”
“Well, I don’t have any money,” the little girl replied.
With a quick wink at me, the cashier said, “Looks like you’re gonna need some help paying for your lunch.”
Just then, the little girl turned and saw her grandfather walking up beside her. She looked back at the cashier with confidence and a straight face and said, “It’s alright now. I don’t have any money, but I have my Grandpa’s money.” A grandfather saves the day and the little girl had full confidence he would pay her lunch ticket.
I’m reminded each day how our heavenly Father paid the sin debt of all of us. And there isn’t a day that goes by in which we don’t need His help in managing life and knowing how to live. Psalm 91:1-2 says, “Those who live in the shelter of the Most High (God) will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. He alone is my refuge, my place of safety, He is my God, and I trust Him.” Knowing that God loves us like He does, we can count the many ways He helps us.
One such way is by God’s presence. As a family you can enjoy time together. As a Christian with brothers and sisters in Christ, you can enjoy time in the family of God. Fellowship awaits us in the presence of God. We should practice welcoming His presence into our life. He is with us every day, every hour, and every moment. And we are as close to Him and our fellow believers as we want to be.
We also gain God’s power as a help for living. He has proven His omnipotence by creating the heavens and the earth. There exists no greater power than that of the divine. He will never tire from helping us and is abundantly able to meet all our needs. He can change people and the circumstances they are in. His power knows no limits.
God’s providence also helps us by giving divine guidance through His loving care and intervention. Providence means: “the act of providing”. I Corinthians 10:13 says, “God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, He will show you a way out so that you can endure.” God always provides an escape from temptation. It’s there, but we must look for it. He directs and intervenes in unusual ways.
God’s protection is best illustrated in the words of Psalm 91:10-11 where it says, “No evil will conquer you; for He will order His angels to protect you wherever you go.” Distance is not a problem for God. Through our prayers, He reaches down to protect our families, friends, loved ones, and the missionaries in foreign lands.
It’s also God’s promises that give us aid in life. His promises are great and they are certainly many. God’s promises do not fail, because He cannot fail. Hebrews 10:23 says, “As we hold firmly to faith and hope, God can be trusted to keep His promises.” This means we must meet the conditions He has set, before the promises can be ours.
God has an irresistible love for His children and because of it, He wants to help us. The Bible does not say God will help those who help themselves, but it does say, “God will help those who depend on Him” (Lamentations 3:25). The more we love God, the more faithfully we serve Him, the truer we are to His worship, the deeper we long for heaven, the more magnetism there will be for His help. If we keep an open heart and home for God’s angels, we may dwell in dark places of hardship here on earth, but we can know the darkness of this world and the earthly tents we pitch are temporary.
Just as the little girl from Virginia trusted fully with no doubt that her Grandpa would help her, let us trust fully in God’s presence, power, providence, protection, and promises. Every day’s march is one step nearer to our abiding rest.
• This bi-weekly column is written by Matthew Dobson. He’s a health educator for the state of Florida, U.S. Army Chaplain, and the Pastor of New Bethel Baptist Church in the New York Community. He recently published his 4th Volume in the “Living With Purpose” Book series which can be found and purchased on www. Amazon.com. You can contact him at: rmdobson@liberty.edu.
