I'm not the one who moved (Joy Santiago)

So most everyone knows I'm a PK (Preacher's Kid), and I'm the youngest of 6, and Sunday Mornings 8 people crammed in the Station Wagon on any given Sunday headed to church, you just never knew what would happen or what you'd hear! On one particular Sunday Morning the boys were shoving each other saying how squished they were and of course Dad and Mom were getting irritated, and told them that being close isn't always a bad thing, so Daddy started telling us a story of when he and our Mom first got married. He said they were driving home one night in his 57 Chevy. He was driving and had his arm around Mom who was squished sitting right up next to him, his arm around her, and he must have been speeding and got pulled over by a cop. As the cop came to the window he said, I thought there was only 1 person in the car, you too were so close, and he let them off with a warning. All of the sudden my Sister goes, that is so sweet how come you don't sit like that anymore? Well without hesitation and all the sudden a little upset, my Mother turns to my Dad and says, “Yeah, WHY DON'T WE SIT LIKE THAT ANYMORE??", He just calmly turned towards her and said, "I'M NOT THE ONE WHO MOVED!" He was still in the same driver's seat he was all those years ago and she had moved over. She just quietly goes, you're right! HE DIDN'T MOVE!

STOP MOVING!! Stop saying I Don't Feel God Close to me. THEN MOVE TOWARDS HIM and you WILL! Be Strong & Courageous We Hear Daily From Pastor Mike, it's so uplifting, yet sometimes really hard to do in times of trouble and doubt! "Be Strong and Courageous. Do Not be afraid or terrified because of them; for the LORD your God goes with you; He Will NEVER Leave You or Forsake You."
(Deuteronomy 31:6) This verse was written to encourage the people of Israel, including Joshua, Solomon, and Hezekiah's military officers. Their Old Testament reality presented their lives with insurmountable challenges, and God wanted them to know unequivocally that they could TRUST Him to Lead them to Victory and NEVER leave them. It was a call of Obedience amidst great adversity. Two verses later God repeated, "The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; He will NEVER Leave you nor Forsake you. DO NOT BE AFRAID; DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED." When WE promise "always" or "never" we are truly incapable of upholding it. And we all know the old infamous saying, "never say never!" Well when God Promises "ALWAYS" or "NEVER" He CAN be fully trusted to Honor HIS word (Numbers 23:19). Of course me being a Worship Leader I love music, and growing up in the church I've been able to hear and learn some amazing songs but there was always one song we would sing that just didn't set well even as a child, maybe you know it. “God said it, I believe it, that settles it for me, and we would sing it with such confidence that how we felt about it is what mattered! Very often, people have such a hard time taking God at His word. Once I became an adult and stronger in my Faith, well that song REALLY bothered me because the truth is, " If GOD says it, THAT SETTLES IT!, whether I believe it or Not." Amen? And there is No reason to doubt it! God Commands our confident trust IN Him. In a World that encourages us to believe in ourselves and achieve all we deserve, it's paramount to understand WHO and WHOSE we are. Society sets a bar to earn and accumulate. Accomplishments and accessories are lauded above humility and God-ordained purpose. So in a place of Worldly Standards, The Old Testament admonishment of (Deuteronomy 31:6) can serve as a benchmark in our Everyday Lives. Another reminding verse, (1 King 8:57) "May the LORD our God be with us, as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us or abandon us." Lord, capitalized, is significant. It means Yahweh, the highest and most emphatic expression of our loving and compassionate Father. He is our Dad, Who loves us Perfectly,it Honors Him for ALL He IS and brings Him close to us as the compassionate Creator of our Hearts. So Just like My Dad said, He's not the one who moved! Today Move closer to HIM, find where He is, and get as squished as you can to him "Keep God So Close You Can Hear When He Whispers!" This World May Fail Us Daily and Leave Us. HE NEVER WILL! Lord, I pray for every person reading this devotion, that just like Ephesians 6 says that God tells us our battle is not against flesh & blood, but it is a spiritual battle. You tell us to put on the full armor of God & then you say PRAY! Not Slay!, but Pray! Lord, Prayer is the most aggressive, proactive, offensive, invasive, action we can take in any situation. Prayer reaches into the spiritual realm & Unleashes God's power to do His Will and today I'm asking that we all feel the presence of Him so close that he won't have to remind us, I'm not the one who moved! Thank you for the ability to Pray let us use it more in our daily lives, Thank you for your Love, Grace, & Mercy for even me a sinner saved by Grace! AMEN