Life will knock you down and laugh at you life will hit you when you're trying to live for Jesus
life is no respecter of persons
but that's when you say you know what
I'm getting up
I'm not going to quit
I'm not I may get knocked down nine times but I'm going to get up 10 times
and I'm not going to quit in the words of the great theologian Rocky Balboa
here's what it is and I quote it's not how hard you can hit that makes you
a winner but it's how hard you can get hit and get up and keep going
the devil will hit you life will hit you I may get knocked down
but bless God I'm getting up I'm not gonna quit
you fall down sometimes you mess up
and God picks you up brushes you off if you belong to Jesus he will never
leave you nor forsake you even when you mess up whatever comes my way
I don't want you but I'm not afraid of you because I've got a God who's going to pick me up
and carry me home God said in Isaiah when you go through the waters I will be with you when you go
through the rivers they will not overwhelm you when you walk through the fire you will not be
burned it's interesting that God didn't say I'll keep you out of every fire you won't have to face
any floods no he said the challenges will come there will be adversities and things we don't
understand but the whole key to this verse is when he said I will be with you in the fire
in the flood in the famine is it a greater testimony that God kept you out of the fire
or that he came with you in the fire and brought you through it there are over 6000 promises in the
bible let me just show you a few of them the first one is Isaiah chapter 43 verse 2 God says this
when you go through deep waters I will be with you when you pass through rivers of difficulty
you will not drown when you walk through the fire you will not be burned up it will not consume you
God is with us and he loves us you're not in it by yourself you're not alone
I would rather walk with God with none of my questions answered
than to walk through life without him and know all the answers
David said though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil why because
you are with me when you know God is with you when you've invited him into your situation you'll have
a smile in the middle of the difficulty you'll have a song of praise in the prison like Paul and
Silas you won't be complaining about the trouble worried about when it's going to work out you'll
be at peace in the midst of the storm you have to do like David father thank you that you were with
me right here in this valley I'm not going to live afraid and worried I may not see a way but
I know you have a way even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death the dark times
he says I will fear no evil for what thou what art with me it is the fact and the assurance that God
is with us that makes all the difference he says I will never leave you nor forsake you
when you and I are walking through dark times the first thing to remember is this
God is with us friend God is always ahead of us he's got everything under control he's working
everything in his absolute perfect timing he has a purpose for every single solitary thing
Hebrews 13:5 I this is God talking I will never leave you and I will never abandon you
he says this over and over and over again from Genesis to the end of the bible all scriptures
God says I will never abandon you now you may have been abandoned in life
by a spouse or a parent you maybe you've been rejected but God's never going to abandon you
God is never going to reject you we are tempted to think that God has forgotten us
it is impossible for God to forget you in fact here's what the bible says Isaiah 49:15
God says this can a mother forget the baby at her breast or a child that she has born the answer is
obviously no no woman could not be nursing a baby and forget the baby at the same time
obviously not he said even if that were possible I will never forget you
look I have engraved you on the palms of my hands God says I have engraved you on the palms of my
hands so I can't forget you a lot of people get tattoos to remember somebody they love
God has a tattoo of you I have engraved you on the palms of my hands where did he get that tattoo
on the cross with nails pierced hands outstretched arms he said this is how much I love you
I love you this much I love you so much it hurts I love you so much
I'd rather die than live without you I love you so much this is how much
we live in peace even when life doesn't make sense because we know
that God is with us and God loves us and he'll never stop loving us and he'll never forget us
when he's with you you cannot be defeated you and God are a majority he is a supernatural God
he's not limited by the fire by the floods by the famines what should take you out
cannot stop your destiny that obstacle may be too much for you but it is not too much for our God
right now he is pushing back forces of darkness he's keeping the fire from burning you he's not
letting those waters drown you he's your protector your deliverer your waymaker your healer your
provider you don't have to do this on your own you don't have to figure everything out you're
not going to know all the details you have to walk by faith and not by sight knowing that he's right
there with you that he's promised everything is going to be all right for you sure the waves
may be big but you have an advantage the God who controls the universe is right there with you
Jesus is there in this difficult moment in your marriage in this trying moment in your finances
in this struggle on your job in this difficulty in this relationship you're rubbing corners with
your boss or your spouse or this struggle you're having on your university campus or in your high
school campus this hard time that you were having he is there I'm talking about where you can look
back over your circumstances and realize that his fingerprints were all throughout that thing
I'm talking about where you can see footprints in the sand as you actually recognize that God was
walking beside you the whole way I'm talking about what other people call coincidence encounters you
see the sovereign hand of God that was aligning your footsteps and setting you in the right place
at the exact right time the manifest presence of God he will never leave you nor forsake you