Are You There, God? It's Me, Gigi...

Judy Blume tapped into every female prepubescent mind in the 70's with her best-selling book, Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. Millions of young girls everywhere knew they weren't alone after reading that book.




Sometimes we have the same thought.



Are you there, God?



Anyone with a measure of faith KNOWS the answer. An undeniable YES.



It may feel as if He has moved away, but that is generally the result of our sin and our pulling away from Him.



For me, it isn't always Are you there? It's more like....





Are you going to let him/her get away with that? When someone hurts or attacks me, I want God to smite them. However, Luke 6:28 says to bless those who curse you, and pray for them who despitefully use you. So, I pray for them. With my mouth. But my heart is saying, Hey God... remember those plagues?


Did you hear that? This one is usually reserved for my husband's insensitive comments. My feelings get hurt and like a petulant child, I stomp off to the throne and beg Him to do something about it. No plagues, just a little spiritual chastising that results in him dropping to his knees and begging for my forgiveness. It's childish and immature and a terrible habit I'm working hard on breaking.




Can you forget I did that? The short answer is yes, He will cast it as far as the east is from the west. BUT there's some confession first. And repentance. He isn't going to just turn a blind eye to willful sin.






Many Christians want the promises of God while still doing the things of the devil.







Then there are the perpetual victims.



I see these often on the streets. I've seen them in the church too.





You know the ones. My dog was hit by a car and he's the only one who ever loved me, not like my parents who divorced when I was six and my wife who left me just because I lost my job. Everything bad happens to me; it's like I'm cursed.



Or, My doctor says I'm lucky to be alive but I'm just in so much pain and I asked God to make me better but I guess He just doesn't care about me.



Two recent encounters illuminated this unwillingness to confess and believe.



After revival services one night this week we went out to eat at a Moe's. There outside the store was a guy with a suitcase, pacing back and forth.



I was going to try to get his story when he came barreling over to the car, sharing his life's story before we were even in park.




My wife got mad because I drank just one time. Well, two days in a row. Well, maybe three. But I didn't drink before that and she says I didn't love her just because I drank for 3 days or maybe 4 and it's not my fault and can you believe she'd kick me out and this program kicked me out for [using the restroom] behind the church because I couldn't wait til the secretary got back. It's just my luck. I did nothing wrong. My wife is wrong. The preacher was wrong. The director was wrong. Now I gotta live on the street.


A couple of phone calls later I had a clearer picture. Whatever the truth was in the program, this was a pattern he'd been in for six years. The it's-not-my-fault pattern seems to go back even farther.


He's begging for help but he didn't want real help. He wanted me to call and manipulate his wife into coming to get him. (I wouldn't and she didn't.) I wanted to tell him to wake up and stop blaming everyone else for his problems.


He was too lit to have understood so I didn't waste my breath. I did give him my card with the names and numbers of several missions. He called the next day to tell me he was headed to one of them. Sadly, I'm not optimistic. He refuses to accept responsibility for anything.





Another girl called this morning. She and I had gotten close when she was at a shelter here in Mississippi. She's having some problems and many are not by her own doing.
Sometimes this is even worse.
When we mess up, we repent and give our lives to God. This is why some drug addicts turn into mighty men and women of God.


We KNOW we are sinners.


But for some, the need to repent is harder to see.


Carolina is one of those people.


All these drug addicts are doing just fine yet I'm a hard-working single mom and nothing works out for me. Why is God blessing them and not helping me?


I've heard this from her for a year.


Because she doesn't drink or do drugs, she thinks there's no need for repentance.


This is why a lot of churchgoers will die and go to hell.


Make no mistake. There is but ONE WAY to Heaven and that is through Jesus Christ.


If you don't believe He died for your sins and accept Him as your Savior, you will not have eternal life.


Good people don't go to Heaven; saved people do.


On the streets you hear a lot of things.


God doesn't care about me. God doesn't know who I am. I stopped caring what God thought when (fill in the blank) happened.


Or worse.


God made me; He's okay with me just like this.



No, sweetie, He's not.

It's called sin and yours traces back to a man named Adam and a fruit tree.



And God was no more okay with that than He is with you living in your sin.



That's why we have Jesus.



But knowing WHO HE IS and KNOWING Him are two different things.



Once you KNOW Him, you know He is always there.


You won't even have to ask.