
Yet, we must realize that even though God is our Protector, He never promises to shield His kids from all of life’s problems.
The world can be a scary place. For many, even our homes aren't safe. We often find ourselves fearful; our peace and sense of security threatened by circumstances out of our control. Ever since sin entered the world people's lives have been marked by trouble and turmoil. Storylines that included imprisonment, debilitating illness, depression, drunkenness, abuse, marital unfaithfulness, and fatherlessness are not reserved for Days of Our Lives. The most beloved biblical characters had skeletons such as these in their prayer closets.
God does not always shield us from evil. He does not always protect us from pain. But our Heavenly Father always protects our identity as children made in His image. Our Heavenly Father's ever-present strength may not prevent bad things from happening to us, but it does prevent us from being defined by those things. We are His beloved children. And nothing can change that.
Problems in life provide God an opportunity to prove how much we need Him. It is in our deepest struggles that our relationship with Him is deepened. It is in going through the agony of adversity that our understanding of Him is developed. It is when our hearts hurt the most that they connect with His heart the best.
Safety is not found in the absence of danger; it is found in the presence of God. Our Heavenly Father is always by our side and at this very moment is offering to give us the security, the strength, the power, the peace that we need. He wants nothing more than to turn our heartache into hope, our frustration into fearlessness, our insecurity into invincibility.