The God Who Stays

1 Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters. 2 Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it! 3 Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies.
 4 Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage. God will surely judge people who are immoral and those who commit adultery.
 
5 Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said,
6 So we can say with confidence, 
7 Remember your leaders who taught you the word of God. Think of all the good that has come from their lives, and follow the example of their faith.

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 

I was not attending a church, and with no guidance, I was feeling lost. What I did not know at the time was that it was in God’s plans all along how and when he would call His lost sheep back. He called me through music, under circumstances I had no control over. Singing was a fun hobby; I never considered myself to be a “professional singer,” feeling under qualified and underserving, I find myself in two church choirs.

In 2008 our brother Gregg was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 52. Listening to and singing hymns was a way to help us through this difficult time. One hymn seemed to help: my father-in- law’s favorite hymn was There Will Be Peace in the Valley, and we played it constantly.

Less than a month after our brother passed, the dad of my cousin who baptized my family, suffered a brain aneurysm. My uncle was just a few years older than me. While he was on life support, a cousin purchased a stuffed frog for our aunt. The frog sang What a Wonderful World. My aunt would make that frog sing for all visitors, and there were many. I wanted to hide that stupid frog.

Sun after the funerals, dragging my feet thinking, choir is on summer break, no big deal if I sleep in, God will understand. I won’t miss anything. Struggling, I decide to attend and sit in the balcony. On summer breaks, our choir director would bring in a soloist. We never knew who that would be.

Time for the anthem, a gentleman I had never met introduces himself as Willie Day. The music starts, he is singing There Will Be Peace in the Valley. Ok, that’s eerie. I feel a stirring in my soul, and my eyes begin to water. He finishes the song, and I am feeling thankful I ignored that devil whispering in my ear. Willie is not finished; he starts the music. He is singing What a Wonderful World. This is no coincidence.

Now you have my full attention, Lord. I feel Your strong presence and Your peace. I realized God has always been in control. He’s the God who stays; it was I that had turned away. I know in my heart that His words are true. We can trust His promise that He will never leave us.

Prayer: God of Love, we bow humbly before you in amazement that the King of the universe would even care about our broken lives. You are a God who leaves the 99 in search for the one that has been lost. Your promise that You will be with us, You go before us, Your promise never to leave or forsake us is true still today. Let the entire universe sing shouts of Hallelujah Praises!! Amen

Tammy Harris, Simpson UM Church, Moundsville, WV, tamjoharris@aol.com, Certified Lay Speaker