Last week, I began a series of articles in this column called "Walking With God." As we travel through each day, we often need to be reminded that God loves us and desires to live with us. The purpose of this column is to encourage and strengthen you as you live daily with God. My name is Chris Martin and I am the pastor of First Baptist Church here in Cedar Key. My desire as a pastor is to help men and women to come into a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ and to continue to grow in His grace and strength. If I can ever help you, please contact me, or if you just want to talk or visit with me, let me know. You may say, "I understand that you say we walk through each day with God, but some days I feel like I am walking alone." One of the greatest struggles that we face in our lives is an understanding that every day we are in the presence of God. We often become occupied, or "too busy" with the concerns of our daily lives and forget that God is with us and is waiting to meet with us. In our attempts to "keep up with daily life," we often forget the most important need in our life is to be in fellowship with God. As the Apostle Paul was traveling on his missionary journeys, he often encountered interesting views about God from the people that he met. During a brief stay in Athens, Greece, Paul was speaking to the council of philosophers known as the Epicureans and the Stoics as recorded in Acts 17:16-34. The philosophers did not know God, yet in their desire to be religious, they had constructed many altars to worship many gods. Paul noticed that on one altar, an inscription read, "To The Unknown God." He began his speech to the philosophers by relating that their "unknown" God was the only true God. He stated that there is only one God and that He has created all things and sustains all things. Paul told them that God is always near, even though they did not know Him personally. Because He is the Creator, He cannot be confined by anything that men can devise or build. He has even created all men and has chosen where and when that they would live their lives. But, He has done all of these things for mankind for one simple reason. "That they should seek the Lord, if haply (or perhaps) they might feel after Him, and find Him, though He be not far from every one of us: For in Him we live, and move, and have our being; " (Acts 17:27-28a). God desires for you to know Him and to realize that you are living with Him each and every day. With all of that in mind, may I ask you a few questions? How is your walk with God? Are you walking with Him throughout your day, whether at work or at home, business or play? Have you asked for His help to strengthen you and bless you while you run your day in the rat race of life? Do you have a real relationship with God? Allow our conversations together in this column to remind you that you are on a journey with God and He is with you right now. My name is Chris Martin and I hope that you are enjoying a great day just walking with God. |