An Ever-Present Help

Yesterday one of my students came in to class and said, "Mrs. Dunton, your face is on my sweatshirt." I was perplexed and had no idea what she was talking about. She came closer and I saw a past edition of the front cover of our Genesis school newspaper printed on the sweatshirt. There were two articles on the front page of that issue. One was about a family in our school who lost their home in the October fires we had and the other was about my battle with cancer. Both were stories of how our student body had come around us to minister to us.

I felt elated and overwhelmed with God's presence. Once again He was reminding me Psalm 46:1 which says He is an ever-present help in times of trouble. I have noticed these past 5 months how God know exactly when to send His visible encouragement. It shows up in the most unexpected ways and forms. It can be in pink bracelets that my advisory girls sold in order to raise carrot juice money, through cards, hand written scripture notes, emails, phone calls, friends juicing carrots and helping to roof our house or transplant a tree, a husband folding clothes or buying me a hot cup of tea, shoulders to cry on, and even through sweatshirts! God has been an ever-present source of comfort to me through his word and through so many of you.

No matter what challenges are in the days ahead you can be confident that He will show up with His loving arms of comfort just when you need them. He sees your struggle and your pain. He is with you in the darkness as much as He is when the skies are blue. Don't trust your feelings, trust His promises and cling to them. You never know when a sweatshirt of encouragement will walk through your door.