He's Always Near

In this episode we talk about God's presence in times of brokenness, disappointment, and hurt. The Bible encourages us that God is close to the brokenhearted — and we explore what that nearness means when life feels its heaviest.

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 1:02

Alright, happy new year, everybody. Thank you for joining us for the first podcast production for the year of 2026. Yes, praise be to God. We made it. And before anybody might jump in and comment or send me anything, yes, I know that biblically the new year starts in the spring. Please leave me alone. We already know. Okay, we are bit we are Bible students up in here, so we know. But by the Gregorian calendar, okay, it is now 2026 and we declare this a new year. So it's for everybody that's still rocking with us and that's still supporting us. We thank you. We appreciate you. We love you. We honor you. And uh we just want pray that this uh message uh is going to be a blessing to you, all right? So uh without further ado, we just want to go in and uh first give an honor to God, uh, giving all glory to God uh for another day and for another opportunity to be here before you, uh be able to speak to you, be able to relay a good message to you. Uh it's gonna be just me today. Uh we do have a couple of guests coming up uh in the upcoming week, so please stay tuned for that and be on the lookout for that. Amen. Uh so going into the New Year's, we always make the New Year's resolutions, right? Always, uh, well, not always. Maybe some people are just like, hey, just whatever happens, happens. Or I'm not making any resolutions because I never go through, follow through with them. Or hey, some people just happy to be here, right? That's cool. Whatever, however you feel, however you rock with that, that's that's that's good. But um sometimes uh we look forward to the new year because we want to close the book or close the chapter on the previous year, right? 2025 has been hell for some people. Um it's been a rough time, right? And so we kind of look towards uh that new year, that next year, to hold uh different uh, you know, a different outlook, a different outcome uh from the the rough time that we may have had um in 2025 or or to build on the momentum and progress that we made in the pro in the previous year. But in that all also comes the risk and the chance and the likelihood, it's very likely, um, that you're gonna run into disappointment, that you're gonna run into some heart heartbreak and you're gonna run into some failures. Um I have a uh a sister in Christ um in uh in my church, she uh pretty much had to end the year burying both of her parents. Well, she's gonna end up burying the uh her mom this weekend. Um I was there, we had to help eulogize her father. Uh, I believe it was in October. So within just a span of a couple of months, um, there she had to suffer two major losses, and it was during the holiday season. So sometimes, you know, we don't know what people really have to fight through and endure um going through these holiday seasons. Like it's it's really tough, and you can imagine with her losing her mom just a few days before Christmas, or a few days after Christmas, that is, um, how the seasons going forward are going to affect her. Uh, it's it's different. And we have to realize that we are not immune to trouble. We're not immune to disappointment. We're not immune to heartbreak or you know, or um, you know, disappointment. Uh God never said it was gonna be easy, you know, to to for for to to live life. You know, everybody has to, everybody has to go through through things, right? Everybody, um, you know, bad things happen to everyone, um, whether you're good or whether you're evil. Uh, there's just the way that you respond, right? The the way that you uh, you know, that makes you who you are, and to that makes the world a little bit better because of you, right? But um we want to start off. Uh I won't I want to I want to walk through scripture just a little bit. Um, especially dealing with uh heartbreak, disappointment, failure. Um, Psalm 38 for uh 34, 34, 18. Sorry. Uh the the the psalm reads, the Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. That right there is a verse that really speaks to God's character when it comes to his children. Because he even in the midst of when you when you've been let down or you feel let down or you feel disappointed because something didn't go your way, uh the the goal or the outlook that you had, which you thought was gonna going to be at a certain time, a certain place, the way it was planned out, whatever it might be, whatever's shortcoming, God is near, right? You lose somebody. You you you lose whether it be to death or to situation. Sometimes you can lose someone that's close to you, that you love, that you cherish, but because of the situation, they now have to be taken away from you, and it and it's har and it's painful, it's heartbreaking. But it says here in the scripture that God is near at that time, and he saves you, and he saves the crushed in spirit. That disappointment, man. That disappointment is something different, right? The disappointment, especially when you had a high hope for something, and you just let down, and it's just it just seems like you can't win. Like, why is this always happening? Why is it always something in it? And it gives you a sense of almost a sense of anxiety or or PTSD almost because you feel like every time you're starting to get some momentum or you're starting to get to a place where you feel comfortable, you feel confident. It's almost like you're afraid to feel that way because you're like waiting for the next uh thing to drop, right? And here is a is a scripture that I that I I I've learned to lean on and I love to hear because it just reminds me that even in those times when I feel the most let down, that the most high is still with me, and he's still there, he's still a part of whatever it is that's going on, and so I can take rest and refuge in his rest, right? Jesus said, Come to me, all the who are are heavy burdened, all the brokenhearted, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Enter my rest. That rest is a continuous rest. That rest is rested in him, knowing that he got you. You could be confident that he has you covered, you could be okay, right? Even in the disappointment, even in the heartbreak, you know that somewhere, somehow, that there's going to be the dawn of a new day. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. Soon your mourning is going to come. That joy is going to come, that joy is going to return because you have that joy in the Lord. You are not one that is without hope because we have our faith in Christ, right? That's who that's that's who we have to truly depend on. A lot of times during with with men, we tend to depend on ourselves more, and the disappointment is greater. Because can you imagine if you you're only depending on yourself, whatever it is that you're doing, the successes, the failures, whatever, you're putting it on you, there is there, there's nothing there to catch you, right? There's nothing there, there's no one else there, and you can do everything right. Those times where you plan perfectly, you stay up all night, you go, you you you dot every I, you cross every T, you go over all the X's and O's, and you're ready to execute, and then something happens and it's completely out of your control. For us as believers, we have to have that faith and that confidence that we are in Christ, and no matter what it is, and no matter what it may look like, that we're covered, and that it's all going to align for us in victory, which which uh takes me to Romans 8.28, right? Romans 8.28 uh states that um all things work together for the good to those that love God and are called according to his purpose. It didn't say some of the stuff, it didn't say most of the things, it didn't say just the good things, it said all things work together. So that means that even in my disappointments, even in my heartbreak, even in those times where it's just like I feel like I cannot get ahead, I know that because of who I am in Christ and who he is overall, that is all working together for my benefit. Whether it's a lesson learned, whether it's a you know, it's a um an opportunity to grow and experience, um, you know, or weeding out people who are not supposed to be in your life, gotta get an amen, right? Sometimes people that disappoint you and that leave you, you gotta say you you have to know that once if it's not anything that you have done, like you know that there's nothing that you've done to uh violate the friendship or the relationship or the the kinship, and they still decide to mistreat you or or or take or or take you for granted or leave you, you gotta give God glory that that those people are now being moved out of your life, that their season has has changed. Now, even though it might hurt, but that pain isn't until death, right? It's a healing pain. The pain is only temporary, and even and it's going to that that hurt that you feel is just the mending of a of a removal of the surgery or the pruning that God had to do in your life. We can't dwell on that moment or these moments and feel like the world is coming to an end just because it hurts, that hurt has to lead to the healing. And the healing is coming from that, whatever that situation might be. Sometimes you have to understand what you're praying for. And when you're praying that a situation turns around for the better for yourself, you can't be upset if God completely removes the situation from you altogether. Whether it might be that job that you're on that frustrates you and stresses you out all the time, whether it might be that that man that you already know he ain't no good, but you still sticking with him anyway. And you still hoping that he's gonna change, and you're still praying for a better day. Well, God says your better day is when he's out the way, right? You you're involved with a female that you know that you're not supposed to be involved with. You're not prosperous in the relationship. So she gotta go. God starts to cut and and prune, you gotta be understanding what you're praying for. And so in those times, you gotta you when God answers the prayers, because he answers all prayers, it might be yes, or it might be no, or it might be wait a minute. It's not a prayer unanswered if it's a no. And it's not a prayer unanswered if it's a different outcome than what you expected. See, when you when you submit your life and your will to Christ, you gotta understand that when he operates, he's not operating just to put a band-aid on the situation, he's operating for you to fix it. There's a resolution. Everything that he did when he was doing miracles, right? They said that it was supernatural, but it wasn't supernatural. He didn't give them any supernatural benefit, he just restored them to their natural state, to where they were supposed to be. You're supposed to be able to see, you're supposed to be able to walk, you're not supposed to have leprosy, you're not supposed to have these diseases. So when he was healing, he was he was restoring. And so it's restoring you to the place that you are supposed to be. It's not putting a band-aid on the situation to let it continue to eat away at you. If you believe that God's a healer, he's you understand that he's going to heal. And it's not about your feelings, it's about your purpose. Who are you? Who are you to him? Right? Where are you at in your walk and in your faith? We can't sit here and complain because the way that it's the way that God has it and clear and cleared the path, because remember in in uh Isaiah, uh, he said that he goes before you and make all the crooked places straight. Right? He clears the path for you. He said, Behold, I'm going to go before you. They can't go with you. And you have to be okay with that, and you have to understand that we have to submit to his will because all things are working together for our good. God is not a respecter, a person. He doesn't care about your title. He doesn't care about the number of degrees you have, he doesn't care about any of that. It's about your heart. Where is your heart at right now? Is your heart seeking after him or is it after the world? And when you finally decide what side you want to be on, that's gonna truly determine your outcome in life. You can decide that you want to focus on the things of this world: money, popularity, whatever it might be, for self-gratification, for self-indulgence, right? And you could very possibly obtain all of those things. A lot of us always talk about hitting the lotto. A lot of us are always talking about your man being born in a rich family, or you know, or complaining that you know we weren't, or you know, wanting the big house, wanting the the fancy cars, etc. But all of those things are temporary. Everything. There is nothing, and hear me when I say, there is nothing on this earth right now that is eternal. So I set my sights on all things eternal. Everything else is just icing. The cake is eternal, that's what I'm focused on, right? That's where the the most um fulfillment is gonna come from. When you're focused on things that are temporary, you gotta understand that even though even if you attain them and you can attain all the riches, even your life is temporary. So at some point in time, you're not going to have the things that you have accumulated on this earth. That's why Jesus said, uh, store your treasures up in heaven. Not here where rust and moss can eat away at it. It's in heaven, it's in glory, it's in eternity. Everything down here is temporary. Solomon, Solomon said in Ecclesiastes that life is but a vapor, it's gone, it's vain, it's vanity, right? If this is what all that you can focus on, you already missed it. So the disappointment and the fail, it's okay to of course I'm not saying that that you should not have goals and dreams. That's that's that's asinine, that's ignorant. Of course, you of course you can, of course you can be driven to attain things. That's not what I'm saying. But if you feel like life is meaningless unless you attain these things, then that's not of God. Nothing not nothing here is worth that. Nobody here is worth that. I know there's some people that feel like there's women that will say like if you that will feel worthless if they they don't find a husband, right? Or a man that will feel worthless if he doesn't have a son. You can't base your your life on these things. It might be disappointing because you desire these things, yes. But ultimately you have to submit to what God's will is, and if that's what's got what God's will is, you have to understand and be able be willing to walk in that and say that I am still in his favor, that I'm still blessed, that I'm still anointed, that I'm still loved by God, that I'm still one of his children. That's where true strength and character come from. So when we think about when we think about things and we think about the trials and tribulations and etc. Um one one scripture that that uh is constantly quoted when we're when we're speaking about overcoming, when we're speaking about uh persevering, when we're speaking about strength, and we're speaking about endurance and and and taking on the challenges of the world. Um it's uh it's uh Philippians uh 4, 4 and 13 says, uh through him, through I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me, right? That's the famous one. That's the one that you know we print on hats, we print on shirts, we'll get it tattooed on our bodies, but there's things that's in that context that that that Paul was saying. If we just read just a couple of verses before that, right? And I just want to read this with you, and you can follow along on the screen. In Philippians 4, starting at verse 11, he says, not that I and I'm uh I'm really from the ESV version, but it says that not that I am speaking of uh being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. Right, I know how to be brought low and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need, I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Well, I was saying in here that no matter what situation I'm in, because I know I'm going to go through them all, right? I'm going I've I've I've been poor, I've been, I've had money, I've been uh fully satisfied, I've been hungry, I've been in need, I've have lived in abundance. I know that I can endure and operate in all things because of Christ. The key thing that made it to me that that meant the most to me was in verse 11. He said, for I've learned in whatever situation I am to be content. To be content, to be at peace with whatever it is, is because we are grounded in the one who is in control. I can deal with all of these things because I have Christ, right? When I know that Christ is my is my uh is my supply, he's my provider, he's my healer, he's my everything. I know that no matter what the situation might place me in right now, whether it's in a place of abundance or whether it's in a place of need, whether I am happy or whether I'm hurting, I know that I am going to make it because of who is in control. Not because of anything that I can do, not because of my physical talents or my physical gifts, my talents. None of that matters, it's Christ. Jesus said, I am the vine, you're the branch. Without me, you can't do anything. We we when we're locked into the that and into the vine, when we're plugged into the vine or we're connected to the vine, there's nothing that that can be thrown at us that will make us feel like we cannot endure until the end. Because we know one, all things work together for the good. Well, one, number one, no matter what we're going through, even if we're upset, even if we're brokenhearted, even if we're we're sad, we know that one from Psalms uh 34 and 18 that he's near the brokenhearted. All right, so we know that he's near. Two, we know that all things work together for my good. So I know that even though the situation might not be ideal, or it might not be the way I planned it, that I know that is working for me. No matter what. Even that person that's trying to keep doors closed from you, it's like it's okay, it's okay, it's alright to have haters. It's cool. Don't get upset because when you are grounded in Christ, you get you can know and operate in confidence that even your actions against me are working in my favor, right? That uh what's that what it says that that that what you meant for evil, but God meant it for good, right? So we know that number two, and number three, I just asked the Lord that through it all that I be content, and I can be content. Like Paul saying in Philippians 4, 11, 13, I can be content because I've been in these situations, no matter what the situation might be, I'm content because I know that I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me. I already have the victory. I'm operating from victory, not defeat. I'm walking in victory, not defeat. I'm living in victory, not defeat. I'm worshiping in victory, not defeat. I'm loving my family in victory, not defeat. No matter what the situation might be, I'm walking in victory. I have it because of who my Lord and my savior is. It's who I belong to. It's nothing about me. It's nothing about me that's oh so special. What's special within me is who is because of what God has made me and what he's doing through me. That's what makes me special. That's my gift. That's what I'm leaning on, and I'm happy to submit to his will and his purpose. Amen. Matthew 28, 19. Great commission. Jesus said, Go ye out to all the world, making disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. He never said being a disciple would be easy. So that's why we have to walk this road together. So while we're walking this road together, let's talk as we travel. Until the next time. God bless you, and I'll meet you back at the disciples' desk.