Dr. Charles Stanley
Read | Psalm 88:8, 18
Have you ever been in the midst of a personal crisis, only to feel that your friends have disappeared? Even if you did forgive them for abandoning you in a time of need, they still may not have come back to offer support. In situations like this, it’s important to remember the One who promises to be there for you all the time.
When Paul was suffering from a “thorn in the flesh,” the Lord told him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:7-9). In other words, He was telling the apostle, “I’ll take care of you.”
During our most trying moments—when we have nothing left to sustain ourselves—we can find strength in God. He doesn’t set aside a reserve of grace and assistance to help us six months from now. We get exactly what we need when we need it. Our Father has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you” (Heb. 13:5 nlt) and He has no intention of breaking that promise.
We may never know why the Lord allowed friends to forsake us when we needed them, but here’s one possibility: He might have been trying to teach us how to rely on Him. At times the only way we will learn to lean on God is by finding that all other supports are gone.
At some point, we all experience the heartache of abandonment. But one thing is certain—Jesus Christ will be standing by our side to strengthen and deliver
us in our time of need. One day we’ll have the privilege of looking back over our lives and seeing how He proved His faithfulness over and over again.
