Colleen Orchanian

There is a commercial with Patrick Mahomes and Troy Polamalu where the tag line is “Never not working.” Patrick runs into Troy working in all kinds of places and each time Troy says, "Never Not Working." That commercial got me thinking about how God – through the Holy Spirit – is Never Not Working.

In John 14, at the Last Supper, Jesus told the apostles, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Paraclete, to be with you forever.” Never not working!

Maybe you are skeptical of that. Surely God is not working in your life ALL the time. Maybe once or twice, but always? How can that be?

For man that is impossible, but with God all things are possible. Yes, God is with us – all the time – never not working. What does that look like in real life?

• When I was far away from God, living a life that wasn’t worthy of Him, He was calling me back. I ignored Him for a long time - 20 years. But he was never not working to bring me back to him. If you feel far from God right now in your life, know that God is never not working to call you back.
• When I was breaking commandment after commandment, without remorse, without even thinking about it, God was offering His mercy. He has an infinite fount of mercy available to all of us. It is the living water Jesus offered to the Samaritan woman at the well. As He rested in the heat of the midday sun, he offered the woman living water. He offers us living water and an abundance of mercy that covers all of our sins. He is never not working to make our souls as white as snow.
• When we are under attack, God is never not working. And we are under attack ALL. THE. TIME. Peter wrote that the devil is prowling about looking for someone to devour. That’s us! He wants us! When the devil attacks us or tempts us or makes things difficult for us or confuses us or causes division in our families and churches and nations, God is there to bring unity and clarity and love and strength. Call on His name. God isn’t the source of evil in the world. That’s the work of the devil. We get to choose who we will serve. God is always begging and pleading and coaxing us to choose Him – the source of life – eternal life. But like Israel in the Old Testament, we sometimes choose the things of this world. God is never not working to show us the WAY. The way of Jesus, the way to holiness, the way to eternal life with Him in Heaven.
• God is never not working when we are suffering. It may feel like you’re all alone – going through whatever trial life has thrown your way. Your cross is heavy and you doubt your ability to carry it. But Jesus is there as your Simon of Cyrene, helping you carry that heavy cross. We still suffer, but we are not alone. God is never not working when we are in our greatest pain.
• God is never not working when we have a life decision to make. Maybe you are wondering about whether you should get married or follow a religious vocation, or move your family across the country for a new job or retire or take on a leadership role in your church. These kinds of decisions take discernment, which means figuring out which path God desires for you. It isn’t simply a logical decision but a spiritual decision. We discern through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, who is never not working to guide us along this journey of life.
• When we want a more profound encounter with Jesus, He is never not working. He always answers that prayer for greater union with Him. Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight in the Lord and He will give you your heart’s desire.” That doesn’t mean he will give me the specific type of encounter I want. Maybe I want a mystical experience of God. That would be cool. But if that’s my desire, my delight is not in the Lord but in some kind of emotional experience. God will draw me closer to Him in the way that is most beneficial to my soul. He is never not working to bring us into union with Him.
• When we don’t feel loved, or have been rejected by someone in our life, God is never not working to show us His perfect love. He never rejects us. Even if a mother should forget her child, I will not forget you, says the Lord. Maybe you are being loved but not by the person you desire. My experience in high school was that the guy I had a crush on did not have a crush on me, and I was not interested in the guy who was crushing on me. Someone wanted to love me, but it wasn’t who I wanted so I didn’t feel loved. That does not mean the love wasn’t there. Human relationships disappoint. But God never disappoints. He is never not working to show us love. His holy Word is filled with love. His life and death is all about love.
• God is never not working to heal us. We live in a broken world – a world broken through sin – our own and the sins of others. These sins wound us, they scar us, they hurt us and sometimes lead us to hurt others. But Jesus is the Divine Physician. He wants to bind up our wounds and heal them. We may pull back from Him because we fear how painful it will be, like a child who doesn’t want you to pull off the bandaid. Removing the bandaid is part of the healing. There is pain in the healing, but also great peace. God is never not working to bring that peace into your life through healing of the deep wounds that have been part of your life.
• God is never not working when we experience His peace. How often Jesus said, “Peace I leave you” or “Peace be with you.” He told us that he gives a peace the world cannot give. But we have to be like Peter when he was walking on water. We have to keep our eyes on Jesus, not on the storm or the water underneath us. Imagine, in the midst of a storm, looking deep into the eyes of Jesus. Wouldn’t everything else disappear? You could see the love in His eyes. You would trust Him completely. You would not be concerned about the chaos around you. You would know deep in your soul that God was never not working to bring you peace.
• God is never not working – When YOU are working for Him. When we serve as God’s hands and feet and eyes and ears, God is never not working. Right now, somewhere in the world – probably in millions of places in the world - someone is serving another person in need. When that serving is done in the name of Jesus, He is never not working. How amazing is it that God involves us – expects us – to be part of His plan of never not working. In the letter of James, he wrote that a faith without works is a dead faith. That’s because we are supposed to be working for the Lord. A living faith is one that is filled with good works, not so we can get to heaven but because it is what God asks of us. When I am working, God is never not working.

I have only scratched the surface of how God is always working in our lives. In each one of our lives – personally and individually. Ask God to open your eyes to see Him – to know with absolute certainty that He is never not working in your life. That is the awesome God that we have. He is our God and we are His people. He is never not working to keep us that way!

So with that, let’s consider a couple of questions to bring to prayer:

1. Are there times in your life when you felt God was not there for you? Can you, in hindsight, see how he was working during that trial?

2. What are all the ways God is working in your life today? Spend time in prayerful thanksgiving for each of the ways that comes to mind.