Is God With You?
- Heidi Eva Jones
- Nov 21, 2025
- 6 min read
Volume 14 Issue 8
Greeting in His Name,
In today's blog, we explore a thought-provoking question: Is God with you? This inquiry serves as a fundamental reflection on the nature of our faith and our personal relationship with God. Take a moment to consider this question sincerely: "Is God with me?" It's important to delve into whether you truly understand and feel this in your heart. Reflecting on this can lead to deeper insights about your beliefs and spiritual journey. So, with that being said, today's blog is entitled Is God With You? Hope you find some inspiration, conviction, and queries.
shalom and love,
heidi
Matthew 1:22-23 (18 – 25)
18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. 20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 "The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" (which means "God with us")."
We encounter Mary, the mother of Jesus, in the verses above. She was in a dilemma for her day. Mary was a pregnant, unmarried woman. She was engaged but not married. Yet, in the face of societal judgment and potential danger, she displayed remarkable courage and faith. In that day and time, people were stoned to death for such an offense. Deuteronomy 22:23-24 says, "If a man happens to meet in a town a virgin pledged to be married and he sleeps with her, you shall take both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death—the young woman because she was in a town and did not scream for help, and the man because he violated another man's wife. You must purge the evil from among you." The Old Testament didn't play around with sin. Side note: That is why it is so crucial for us to understand the benefits of Christ's arrival. Not that we willfully and intentionally live a life of sin because Jesus will and has taken care of it. But we need to rejoice because, through him, we have the benefit to confess, turn, and walk away from sin, knowing that -OUR SIN- has been thrown into the sea of forgetfulness.
So Mary was in a dilemma, as we read in verse 19, "Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly." I asked myself why Joseph hesitated to reveal Mary's condition. Because verse 20 says, "But after he considered this," meaning after he got home and thought about it, he did as any normal man would. He probably went through a wide variety of emotions, such as madness, sadness, regret, and anger. Then I can imagine him saying, NO, I'm not caring for some other man's child. However, that's when we see Joseph go to sleep in that same verse - and this is why I believe the hesitation happened. It says, "An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, 'Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." We ought to be shouting right there. If God had not allowed that angel of mercy to intervene, if Joseph had not had that dream, we would not have received that great promise - "he will save his people from their sin."
The scripture goes on to say in verses 22-23, which is our focus scripture, "All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 'The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" (which means "God with us")."
Going back to the question. Is God With You? We hear people talk about God and swear on God, but when it truly comes to a relationship with God, it is nonexistent. And our hearts are not on fire for the Lord. Mary's heart had to be on fire for the Lord because she put herself in a vulnerable, sacrificial place. Just take a look at Luke 1:28, "The angel went to her and said, 'Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." And by the time the angel got done telling Mary she was about to have a baby out of wedlock, she said in verse 38, "I am the Lord's servant,"... "May your word to me be fulfilled."
So I ask, Is God with you? Church, you have to know this with certainty. You've got to know it because the enemy is lurking like a lion, ready to devour you. Ready to strike at any moment to shift you off course, to keep you in bondage, or even snuff you out.
There are three words I want to share with you: Recognize! Respond! Receive! Repeat it! Recognize! Respond! Receive! You have to recognize-respond-receive God.
As we approach the Advent season, we recognize that Christ has come in the birth of baby Jesus; we also recognize that He must return. John shared that God so loved the world that He sent His only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not perish but will have everlasting life. It baffles me that we want the benefits, blessings, and favor, yet we don't want to recognize Jesus by walking obediently with him day by day. It is not enough to say it; we have to live it.
Is God with you?
Not only do we need to recognize, but we need to respond. How can I respond? You may ask. You can respond like Mary and Joseph with a yes. God says, "Love me with all your heart, mind, and soul." God says, "Love your neighbor as yourself." God says, "Deny yourself and take up your cross," meaning surrender to Him fully, imitate Him daily, sacrifice for and love others, break away from sin, and spend quality time with Him in fellowship.
Is God with you?
Once you recognize and respond, you will receive your benefits. Verse 21 says, "He will save His people from their sins." Hallelujah! But if you didn't know, Jesus brought other benefits to the table for those who believe in Him. There is healing; by His stripes, we are healed. There is provision, but seek the kingdom of God first, and everything else will be added unto you. There is peace, my peace I give to you, not as the world gives - do I give to you. Jesus gives us all that we need. As the songwriter says, He's got everything you need! He's got hope for the hopeless, he's got peace for the peaceless, he's got joy for the joyless, and he's got love for the loveless.
Is God with you?
If not... let me share this story with you.
Before listening to the children's hearts, a nurse on the pediatric ward would first place the stethoscope in their ears, allowing them to hear their own heartbeats. Their eyes would always light up in amazement. However, she never received a response quite like the one from a four-year-old boy. After placing the stethoscope on his chest, she asked, "Listen. What do you think that is?" He furrowed his brows in concentration and looked up, trying to figure it out. Then a beautiful smile spread across his face as he exclaimed, "Is that Jesus knocking?"
Is God with you?
LIFE QUOTE
"I do believe that God is with us even when we're at our craziest and that this goodness guides, provides, and protects."
~ Anne Lamott
Let Us Laugh!
The Sunday School teacher asks the children to draw Christmas pictures. She goes over to one student and sees he’s drawn a picture of four people on an airplane.
“What is this?” she asked.
“Mary and Joseph and Baby Jesus on a flight to Egypt,” he says.
“Well… who’s the fourth person?”
“That’s Pontius, the pilot.”
Hope to see you Next Month.... I mean next week... trying to catch up
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