LISTEN ONLINE“What is at the core of my faith?” Sandra, a vicar, asked herself. During one “terrible year” she began to understand more clearly. She moved to a demanding new parish, her father died suddenly, she underwent major surgery and then her mother also died unexpectedly. She reflected, “I simply couldn’t go on, retreated and was off work for nearly five months.”
Sandra felt like everything was stripped away—except the familiar verse from Psalm 23, which came to her mind in its formal language: “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death . . . thou art with me” (Psalm 23:4, KJV). From then on, she clung to the words: “You are with me” as a life-rope, holding onto God through all the turbulence and uncertainty.
In the years since, as Sandra has found hope in God and recovered both personally and professionally, she has kept at the heart of her life this simple but profound truth: “God is with you”. In this, she echoes David’s assurance that God would never leave him as he walked “even . . .through the darkest valley” (v. 4) while escaping from his enemies in the wilderness.
We too can find comfort and hope in God’s assurance that He will guide us, refresh our souls and envelop us in His goodness and love all the days of our lives (vv. 3, 6). Truly, God is with us.