It’s Always Something
“For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor power, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39
All of us at times get bogged down in life by all the cares, frustrations, hassles, worries and disappointments that never seem to end. Some days it’s just one thing after another. Like the character Rosanne Roseannadana of Saturday Night Live fame used to say, “It’s always something.” No one said life in a sin-cursed world would be a cakewalk. Folks are always looking for a time when they can be trouble free, you know, “when I find a spouse”, “when the kids are grown”, “when our debt is all paid off”, “when I retire”, etc. Well, I have been through all those stages, and the trouble-free life has evaded me. I’ll let you in on a little secret: there is no trouble-free life on this present earth, but you already knew that.
The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 8:37 that those who follow Christ are more than conquerors through Him who loves us. Being more than a conqueror means Jesus has already gone ahead of you and me to prepare the way. What we go through now won’t be forever, even though our hardships, sorrows, or pain may seem endless. Paul continued to give us hope by listing some rather drastic things that cannot separate us from God’s love as shown through Christ. Death can’t separate the believer; death actually ushers the believer into Christ’s presence in a perfect paradise. Life can’t separate us because Jesus is with us every step of the way. Even though those steps may be difficult, He has already walked the path of suffering, thus He knows exactly what we are experiencing. Angels, whether good ones or bad ones (demons) can’t separate us nor can governments. Even the power of Satan himself can’t remove God’s presence from our lives. He can vex us and hassle us in an attempt to harm our faith, but he can only go so far. “…greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world” (I John 4:4b).
Whatever obstacles we are facing now or in the future can’t keep us from God’s love. I think that obstacles have a tendency to draw us closer to the Lord. Neither the height of prosperity nor the depth of adversity will cause Christ to leave us. Those who know Him personally through repentance of sin and faith in Him belong to Him, and He’s not going anywhere other than to return to earth one day and claim His bride. Jesus is the One who sticks “closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24).