God Is Actively Present!
Thank you for joining us to see what special truths the Lord will reveal to you today through His Word. As always, we pray the Holy Spirit will open the riches of His Word to you and give you a lasting revelation of His truth which will be an anchor for your soul. Eric
We see the world we live in, daily, becoming more and more volatile! With that in mind, we will be looking at numerous very dynamic Scriptures which will encourage your heart.
The news has not been good. As of May 2025 there are at least 30 worldwide volcanoes with continuing eruptions. At this writing, according to the United States Geological Survey in the past 24 hours there have been 32 magnitude 2.5 earthquakes worldwide. We hear, daily, of wars, revolutions, and Christians being persecuted and murdered for their faith. The very fabric of societies is being changed. Good is called bad and bad is celebrated as good. The media has become so consumed with pushing particular agendas that people don’t know if anything of what they are hearing is true.
Today and in the days to come, the upheaval will only increase as we move nearer to the day of the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
We have been hearing statements and questions from those we encounter, such as, “Where is God?” “Why did God allow this to happen to me?” “Can’t He stop all of this turmoil?”
As with every difficult situation and loss we have faced, we as believers, have turned our attention to God’s Word to find the encouragement, hope and answers we need.
In and of ourselves, we don’t have answers for many of the questions, however, we can and do speak the Truth and revelation of the Word of God, which we have been given by the Spirit of God. Then, we experience the peace, hope, comfort, encouragement, return of confidence and joy that is given to us through the love of the Father.
When we don’t ‘see the whole picture’ we often times focus on the pressing problem and can tend to get stressed, fret, worry or for some, start to panic. Our good news and what we will be sharing with you today, in more detail, is that God always sees the whole picture! In fact, God not only sees the immediate whole picture, but what He sees, is His entire plan - from beginning to end!
All of creation was formed by God, including every individual that exists. For mankind, in addition to forming us, He gave us life. He also has known from before time began, how each of us would fit into His plan. So, let’s begin!
Psalm 24:1, “The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; 2 for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters.” God is owner and is sovereign over all creation, including resources, creatures and all people. Being our Sovereign God, means He is the absolute ruler, Master and Supreme Authority of all things. His creation includes all things in heaven, on earth, visible and invisible. He created and sustains (revives and refreshes) the Universe. (Colossians 1:16, Psalm 54:4). Colossians 1:16 continues to reveal that all things were created ‘through Him and for Him.”
“God is in complete and total independent control over every creature, event and circumstance at every moment in history.” (got questions.org). Isaiah 14:24 reveals, “The LORD Almighty has sworn, "Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will happen.” Isaiah 46:10 (DRB) reads, ”My counsel shall stand, and all my will shall be done.”
“God has the ability and power to fulfill His purposes regardless of human actions or opposition.” (gotquestions.org). No person, demon or the devil can stop God’s purposes, plans or will from being fulfilled.
Very importantly, we discover that God’s plan and purpose involves mankind. He created this earth with us in mind and intended that we exercise stewardship over it. To be a steward means: to care for, manage and bring order. Genesis 1:28 (ESV) reads, “And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth."
Even though Adam and Eve failed to obey God, He did not forsake them. However, life became more difficult for them. Even then, because of His love, mercy and grace, He made a plan and made the way for mankind to be restored to His intended oneness with Himself. (For more you can read our previous post from 6/4/25, “‘Home’ For the Believer”).
Amazingly and thankfully, His fulfilled plan for that restoration of oneness includes your and my restoration, through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
“God’s sovereignty is overshadowed by His goodness, His love, His mercy, His compassion, His faithfulness, and His holiness. Knowing His Word and Him, we realize that God controls all things for His perfect purpose.” (gotquestions.org).
Thus, in the midst of all the turmoil we see - God is still involved in the fate of men and all of His creation.
2 Timothy 1:9 reveals, “He has saved us and called us to a holy life--not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,” I want you to truly grasp this truth - He saved and called us to a holy life because of His own purpose. “‘Purpose’ in this verse means : a deliberate plan, an advance plan, it is an intentional design.” (Word Wealth, NSFLB). His saving and calling you was an intentional design and plan of the God of all creation! You were created by Him to fulfill His purpose and plan! There are no accidents or mistakes with God. Let me say it one more time, - “He set in motion an intentional design and plan for you and your life, for His purpose!” “No matter the hardship, suffering, bitter disappointment, even when wrongly treated - Christians can know God will work amidst such situations to fulfill His good purpose in His children. The situation may or may not be directly changed by God, but even if situations stay difficult God guarantees ultimate good results.” (Textual notes NSFLB, Romans 8:28). That is such good news!
Psalm 33:13-15 reads, “From heaven the LORD looks down and sees all mankind; 14 from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth-- 15 he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do.” Still today, the Lord looks down, sees and watches. He considers everything we do. God is watching over us, even now, as he directs the plan He has for each one of us.
Today, there are many leaders, kings, presidents, dictators, emperors, gangs, ‘religious’ groups and ungodly men and women who believe they are in control of what happens in this world. They are not!
King Nebuchadnezzar was killing the wise men of Babylon because they could not interpret his dream. Daniel was one of those wise men. God gave Daniel a night vision and revealed the dream to him. God intervened!
God changes the times and seasons; removes kings and raises up kings; gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding, reveals deep and secret things, and knows what is in the darkness. Light dwells with Him. (Daniel 2:20-22).
“God is sovereign and is supreme over all humanity. He does what He pleases with the army of heaven and the peoples of the earth. God’s purposes cannot be annulled. No one can restrain His hand. The imagery of God’s hand is often used in Scripture to denote His power and intervention in human affairs.” (Bible Hub Study Bible, Daniel 4:35).
God is omnipotent (having unlimited power and authority). All of His purposes will be fulfilled. None of His plans can be thwarted. (Job 42:2).
God’s ways, plans, purposes and actions are beyond human understanding. (Isaiah 55:9).
We don’t always understand. We don’t see the whole picture. We can’t imagine how things will ever ‘change or work out.” We can’t comprehend the ‘whys’ of events in the world or even in our own lives.
However, this we know:
God has total control over the plans He has for this world.
He has a plan and a purpose for each one of us.
He personally (knit), formed and created each of us in our mother’s womb, (Psalm 139:13).
He is actively present, working and involved in each of our lives. Acts 17:28 reads “In Him we live, and move and have our being.”
He warned us. John 16:33 reads, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." His peace is a deep abiding sense of well-being and assurance found in Him, even in the midst of conflict. The world’s peace (that which is under the influence of sin and in opposition to God) is temporary, superficial and does not last.
He watches over us. (Proverbs 15:3, Psalm 33:18,19).
He has plans for our good. (Jeremiah 29:11).
We can trust Him and shouldn’t lean on our own understanding. (It is lacking.) (Proverbs 3:5).
He will direct our ways. (Isaiah 30:21).
God is a safe place for us, our refuge, strength and a very present help in times of trouble. (Psalm 46:1).
I will close today with Isaiah 26:3 (ESV), “You (God) keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” ‘Perfect peace’ in the Hebrew is “shalom shalom, a repetitive that signifies completeness and absolute peace. This peace is not merely the absence of conflict, but a profound sense of well-being and wholeness.” (Bible Hub Study Bible). When our minds are ‘stayed’ on Him, it means our “thoughts and intentions are firmly fixed on God and our heart is undivided and fully committed to Him. ‘Trust in God’ is the foundation for experiencing His peace.” (Bible Hub Study Bible). The trust we have in the Lord can’t be passive. We need to actively demonstrate that we rely on God’s promises. We must learn through the Word of God that we can absolutely rely on His character and promises. “For all the promises of God are “Yes” in Christ. (BSB, 2 Corinthians 1:20a).
Hallelujah! God is actively present and working on our lives and we can absolutely trust Him!
[For more on this subject, I recommend you read our post, “God is Involved” August 9, 2024.]
We would ask that if you know of someone who would benefit from reading this post, that you share it with them.
Also, all of our previous blog posts are available to be read at any time. Please feel free to read them. We would love to hear from you concerning the good things the Lord is doing in your life.
If you have a need for prayer, you can send a message to our e-mail address, we would be happy to bring your needs before the Lord. You may send your requests to: Pastorericthompson@gmail.com
Unless noted otherwise, all Scripture are taken from the New International Version.
DRB Douay-Rheims Bible
ESV English Standard Bible
NSFLB New Spirit Filled Life Bible
BSB Berean Standard Bible