I don’t know how God speaks to you, but especially in my toughest times, God speaks to me through music. Whichever way I am going about my day– driving in the car, working on a worship document, folding laundry– if I have music playing, there is always the chance that God will stop me in my tracks. You likely know what I mean: a drop in your stomach, God tingles all over, the notes or words hit just right to let you know you’re not alone. There have been plenty of musicians that have left me here: Patty Griffin, Ke$ha, Brandi Carlile, Beyonce, Todd Snider, Milk Carton Kids, or Sara Bareilles are just some of these prophets who have done this as of late.

But most recently, it’s been Patty. Over and over, it’s been Patty.  She sings in When It Don’t Come Easy:

But if you break down
I’ll drive out and find you
If you forget My Love
I’ll try to remind you
And stay by you when it don’t come easy

Life is full of unexpected shifts, new roads in front of us, twists and turns that leave us in unfamiliar territory.  A lot of times, it can feel like we’re all alone when we find ourselves broken down on the side of life’s highway. Even more frequently, we can convince ourselves that we are alone.  But then, like an old friend, in the dead of the night, God shows up. God breaks in, through song, through a light breeze, the light of a new dawn, through a touch from a lover or a friend, to remind us, in our search for meaning and understanding, that we are not alone.

Now, it doesn’t mean that God is some sort of genie who then can *snap* change our situation just like that.  I’ve always hated these sort of Santa Claus descriptions of God. But what does happen is that the God who shows up for Elijah in the cave, who walks alongside the disciples on the road to Emmaus, who was present with Hagar in the desert is the same God who is going to come sit with you on the side of the highway while you wait for AAA to show up. We are not alone. You are not alone.  God is always with us and is always trying to remind us She will stay by you when it don’t come easy.

Peace,

Stephanie Cooper
Associate Pastor