Living 4 Him

“You have searched me, Lord, and you know me.” Psalm 139:1 (NIV)

I sang in a church choir for 30 years.  Often the music we sang had words written at the beginning of a piece describing how it should be sung; “exuberantly” or “in hushed tones.”  I clearly remember the words written at the top of one of our pieces: “with assurance.”  I don’t remember the piece, just the words that reminded me of a beautiful way to live; with assurance in God’s love for us and his steadfast presence with us.

With assurance! What a powerful way to see our lives! Part of Jesus’ job on earth was to relay messages to God’s children, helping them know they could live with assurance.  His Father, our God, was in the heavens and completely aware of our earthly needs. 

God’s awareness of this world goes deeper than merely knowing who we are.  God possesses an acute knowledge of our inner and outer being, along with the formula for living on earth with success.

A better way of understanding this concept is presented in Psalm 139. David wrote this Psalm to assure himself that God knew him and was with him and would lead his life to make an impact now and in eternity.

O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.
You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. You see me when I travel  and when I rest at home.
You know everything I do. You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord. You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand! Psalm 139: 1-6 NLT

The Psalm continues to impress that God’s presence is constant and the intimate details of our lives are known by the Creator, therefore we can depend on him to be a loyal guide in all we do.

God’s full knowledge of this world and all that inhabits the world declares that we may live with assurance.

God knows what we need.  As Jesus spoke with his disciples, he was certain to let them know that the Father had detailed knowledge of them, watching over their needs with loving concern.  Matthew 6:8 says, “Your Father knows what you need before you even ask him.”  God stands by us, a wealth of information about who we are.  When we turn to him in our thoughts and words, he advises us, lending an understanding of what we need.  We live with assurance when we partner with God to navigate the needs in our lives. 

God knows how to take care of us.  In Matthew 6: 25-34, Jesus spells out how deeply concerned God is for his creation. He will supply what is necessary for the birds of the air and the flowers of the field. In caring for these living creatures, he demonstrates care for his children as well.  We live with the assurance that God is always taking care of us.

God knows the future.  The future is most likely a source of frequent worry and wondering. But our omniscient God of all knowledge knows the future too.  Jesus spoke with his disciples of future events in Matthew 24, signs of times that lead to the return of the Son of Man. Jesus carefully explained to the disciples that they should not worry about this time, because no one knows when these things will happen. Only the Father knows.  (Matthew 24:36)

Grand assurance fills our days when we walk in faith with God.  God knows us intricately and furnishes the means to live productively upon the earth.  God’s divine knowledge outshines our minute comprehension of events and circumstances taking place.  And so we trust. 

Take this assurance with you, from DailyEffectivePrayer.org:

Trust God anyway . . . God knows exactly what He is doing in your life. Whatever He does is all for your own good. We might not have the full grasp of how He can make all things work together for good, but trust God anyway.  He is bigger than all you will ever face.

Reaching in (allowing God’s word to work in our souls):  Visit the scripture references mentioned in this devotion and in your reading absorb the reality of God’s knowledge.

Reaching out (taking God’s word into the world):  Make a habit of facing each day with this assurance in your heart and on your lips: “God is taking care of me!”  Repeat as often as necessary!