Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Yes, our hearts can say
Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful
Matt Redman
I learned a new song this morning.
You know how sometimes it just feels like you're walking this life alone?
That God is somewhere, sure, but not present right with you?
This Lenten experience for me has been about trying to combat that feeling.
Growing up, I was taught that "If God seems far away, it isn't God that moved."
So I've been journeying - journeying back to God as I pursue what it means to be a disciple.
This morning, thanks to my friend Julie, though ...
I was reminded that it doesn't matter who moves.
Because even if I walk away from God,
God pursues me.
Never once did we ever walk alone.
Never once did you leave us on our own.
Of course not.
Because you are God.
Nothing I do can separate me from your love and your presence.
Romans 8 says so.
So I wonder why it is that sometimes God feels so far away.
It has to be that I'm not stopping to notice, right?
It reminds me of one of my favorite lines in any hymnal: "Tune my heart to sing thy praise."
Maybe I've just been out of tune.
That's a pretty easy fix on an instrument.
You listen, you make a minor adjustment, you listen again.
Perhaps it's no harder than that to tune my heart.
Listen, adjust, listen.
Lent is a time that calls us to adjust.
Calls us to listen.
Because God is in our midst always.
We have never walked alone,
and we never will.
No matter where you go or where you try to hide,
God will pursue you.
Tune my heart, God.
Tune my heart to hear you better.
To listen more carefully.
Amen.
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