Where is God When You Walk Away?

 

The born-again child of God (John 3:3-8) who has trusted in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6) cannot lose his salvation and is eternally secure (John 10:28-29; Romans 8:38-39). Jesus promised that He would never cast out any who have come to Him, for it is His Father’s will that He should lose none of His children and that all of them have eternal life (John 6:37-40).

In His prayer at the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed for every one of us who have trusted Him, for He kept secure every one whom the Father had given Him. Notably, that did not include Judas Iscariot, the “son of perdition,” who outwardly appeared to follow Him but who never had placed his faith in Him (John 17:9-24).

Once we are God’s children (Romans 8:14), He exhorts us to leave evil and wickedness behind (2 Timothy 2:19). But even the apostle Paul said he had to "die daily" to his flesh and yield to the Spirit to avoid sinning, a battle he did not always win, for none of us can (Romans 7:14-23). When we do sin (Romans 3:10,23; 1 John 1:8-10), it is our old sin nature winning out, not the Holy Spirit within us, Who cannot sin (1 John 1:4-7).

If God were to throw us out of His family whenever we sin, or whenever we sin "enough," how could He then chasten us (Hebrews 12:5-11) as a Father chastens His children? What would sinning "enough" to merit expulsion from God’s family even mean? Holy God does not differentiate levels of sin, and He cannot tolerate in His presence any sin or any sinner who has not been washed clean in the blood of Christ (Romans 3:25; Revelation 1:5) and taken on His robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10).

If a believer were expelled from God’s family whenever he sinned, even if the sin is so grievous that he tries to convince others of lies and false teachings, it would leave no room for the chastening hand of God to correct and perfect him, leading him back to the truth and to the right path (Hebrews 12:5-11).

Why would any child of God “walk away” from the faith? Reasons could include loss of mental faculties or psychiatric illness, or severe life circumstances causing one to doubt God or to be angry with Him. Or, perhaps most commonly, falling in with the wrong crowd and being influenced by them (2 Peter 3:16-17), or listening to and believing the lies Satan is blasting over the airwaves (Colossians 2:8; 2 Timothy 3:13; 4:3) through his wicked people in high places (Ephesians 6:12).

We should stand firm in our faith (1 Corinthians 16:13; 2 Peter 1:10; Ephesians 6:11-14), but pride or unbelief may cause us to fall from stedfastness into reproach, temptations, lust or condemnation, meaning disapproval but not damnation (1 Corinthians 10:12; 1 Timothy 6:9; Hebrews 4:11; 2 Peter 3:17; James 5:12)

Knowing that his time is limited, the devil is working overtime to spread false teachings, to keep people from being saved by the truth and to ruin the fruitfulness and testimony of those who are saved. For this reason, we must constantly be on guard not to believe his lies (1 Peter 5:8-10), by studying God’s Word (2 Timothy 2:15; 3:16), knowing and standing for what we believe (Colossians 1:23; 1 Corinthians 15:57-58), and putting on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18).

But what if we do drift away by turning our path, attention, and affection to the world and away from Him? As the saying goes, if we find ourselves separated from God, it is we who have moved, and not Him. He cannot change or lie (Hebrews 13:8; Titus 1:2), for He is faithful (Psalm 89:8; 1 Corinthians 1:9; 10:13) and true (James 1:17), and He will never leave nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).

So what does God do with His child who has “walked away” and may even be encouraging others to do the same? First, He speaks with His still, small voice (1 Kings 19:12), perhaps convicting them of their error through a Bible verse they see or hear (2 Timothy 3:16), or a word from a Godly friend (Proverbs 27:17). If it is not too late and their conscience has not yet been seared (1 Timothy 4:2), He speaks to them through His Spirit.

Then it may take harsher measures, just as a loving earthly father resorts to when his child still disobeys in response to “the look” that means “Don’t even think about doing that again;” the verbal correction, and the “time out.” Then the earthly father may take away the child’s privileges, and God may allow Satan to remove what is important in the life of His child – health, wealth, job, and even family.

We see God allowing Satan this power in the life of Job (Job 1:8-22) even though God considered Job to be His faithful servant, to perfect Job and to glorify God when He restored all to Job (Job 42:10-17).

But what if God allows trials into the life of His child to correct him and to increase his faith, and yet the child still rebels? As our late pastor at our former church used to say, “Sometimes God gets more glory from His child’s death than from his life.” Even within the church, or called-out body of believers, there are vessels which honor the Father and are suitable for His use, and those which dishonor Him (2 Timothy 2:19-21).

If we are dishonoring God by ruining our own testimony and discouraging or deceiving others, God may not only prune us as He would unfruitful branches (John 15:1-2), but He may allow Satan to take our life and destroy our flesh (Ezekiel 18:24-26) before we can do more damage.

Even then, however, our loving Father takes us home to be with Him throughout eternity. We cannot lose our salvation or our relationship to God as His born-again children, even though we can lose the joy of our salvation while on earth (Psalm 51:12), our fellowship with God (1 John 1:3-6), our earthly life itself (Matthew 10:28; Romans 6:23), and the eternal rewards we could have had by fulfilling God’s perfect plan for our lives (2 John 1:8-9).

All of the above applies only to the person who has truly realized that they are a sinner in need of a Savior; that Jesus Christ paid in full for all of their sins (Romans 3:23-26); that He is the Son of God (1 John 5:20) Who rose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:4); and who has asked Him to be his Lord and Savior (Luke 23:42-43). When we are saved, we become a new creation in Christ, and there should be evidence of a changed life (2 Corinthians 5:17). As Jesus said, “by their fruits ye shall know them" (Matthew 7:15-20).

No doubt there are many who have said the “sinner's prayer” without truly repenting or placing their faith in Christ, and without asking Him into their heart (Matthew 7:21-23). They may have done it only to please someone else, to fit in with their peer group, or even to try to go to Heaven without having a relationship with Christ.

These people are still unsaved, and they may subsequently "walk away" or “fall away” from the faith they never really had. But only God knows the hearts (Psalm 44:21; 139:23) and knows whether they have accepted or rejected His Son.

Therefore, I believe that a better way to state "Once Saved, Always Saved" is "Once TRULY Saved, always saved." May we remain stedfast, unmoveable, and continuing in the work He has so graciously appointed to us (1 Corinthians 15:58), always setting Him before us and at our right hand, so that we shall not be moved (Psalm 16:8). Once we are truly saved and born again as a new creation in Christ, may we stand fast and walk with Him in the light, yield to His Holy Spirit guiding us into truth, and may we do all to His glory!

© 2015 Laurie Collett

Reposted from the archives

Missed Service

 

Photo by Rodhullandemu 2020

I rolled over lazily in bed, slightly disoriented by light streaming through the window, but I felt certain I had time for a quick morning snooze. But then a small voice inside nudged me to look at the clock. Oh no! It was already ninety minutes later than when I needed to get up to prepare for church. At this point I would be so late I wondered if it was even worth attempting to get there.

But then a great wave of peace rolled over me and I breathed a deep sigh of relief as I realized it was only Saturday – a day I could sleep in guilt-free!

I didn’t think much more about it until one of our morning’s devotionals was about the writer’s grandmother, who always laid her clothes out Saturday night so that she would be prepared for church on Sunday morning. Even on the Saturday night that the Lord took her home, her husband discovered the outfit she intended to wear on the Lord’s Day, neatly cleaned, pressed and ready on a hanger.

The author of the devotional compared her grandmother’s preparation to Jesus’ parable about the wise virgins who kept their lamps trimmed and filled with oil, so that they would be ready when the Bridegroom came to take them to the wedding feast. In contrast, the foolish virgins failed to be vigilant, let their oil run dry, and had to go out to buy more, completely missing the Bridegroom’s return and being forever shut out of the wedding feast (Matthew 25:1-13).

As we don’t know the day or the hour our Bridegroom, Jesus Christ, is returning (Matthew 24:36) to Rapture His church to Heaven (1 Corinthians 15:51-58), we need to be ready to meet Him by trusting in His death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6). Those who have not done this before His return will be left behind during the Great Tribulation, and those who have rejected the Gospel before the Lord’s return are unlikely to then accept Christ, as God will send them a strong delusion allowing them to believe Satan’s lies (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12).

But even for those of us who have trusted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we need to be ready for His imminent return. At the judgment seat of Christ, we will all give account to Him for what we have done with the time, talent and treasure He entrusted to us since we were saved (1 Corinthians 3:10-15).

We will receive rewards for acts of service done with the right motive of pleasing and honoring Him. But we will lose rewards for good works done to bolster our pride or earn praise from others, and for missed opportunities when God opened the door for us to grow His kingdom, but we failed to walk through the open door.

Do we give Jesus Christ the pre-eminence in our lives? He deserves to be first (Colossians 1:18) as the One Who created us for His specific purpose He determined before the beginning of time (Ephesians 2:10), Who sustains us (Colossians 1:17), and Who redeemed us from sin, death and hell (Job 19:25). Or do we take Him for granted, giving Him our second best, our leftovers, and our lowest priority?

Shortly after I was saved, a fiery preacher visited our church and gave a powerful sermon on the importance of serving Christ. I still remember him saying “It is not a small thing to sing in the choir, or to be an usher or greeter, or even to faithfully attend every service!” The empty choir seat, the absence of someone meeting a visitor with a warm smile, and sparse attendance speak volumes about the apathy of the church, as in the End Times church of Laodicea, and the need for revival (Revelation 3:14-22).

There are many valid reasons why born-again Christians miss church on occasion, such as health or family emergencies, being out of town, or having to work. Many are out for extended periods because of physical limitations or serving as full-time caregivers. Many avoid church in times of discouragement, grief, or failure, thinking they will be a burden to others, when these are the times they most need to be uplifted by the body of Christ.

But how many miss services to catch up on their sleep, housekeeping, at-home work, or even recreation? How many don’t go because they think it’s inconvenient or they’d rather be doing something else? How many let the devil convince them that they can just as effectively worship in their own home or out in nature, and that they won’t be missed and that it doesn’t matter?

But it does matter, not only to the individual believer missing opportunities for service, spiritual growth and encouragement, to the congregation seeking fellowship and worship with the body of Christ, and to the pastor with a burden on his heart to feed the flock and reach souls for Christ, but to God Himself. He designed each of His children with unique gifts and talents to fit perfectly as a member in the body of Christ (Romans 12:4-9).

Just as our physical body functions poorly or not at all if we are missing a limb, nerve, or vital organ, the church suffers when individual members are absent. Imagine if the pastor didn’t show up! But each of us has a vital role, and not just the deacons, leaders, teachers, worship leaders, musicians, ushers and singers. What if no one is there to stock the rest rooms or turn on the lights?

There have been times, such as during the Covid pandemic, that many churches prudently turned to online services to protect the health of their members and community. Yet when the pandemic was over, many who had gotten used to missing church no longer missed it. They initially grew content to watch Sunday services online, never returned to church, and then stopped watching altogether, disobeying the Lord’s command to not forsake corporate, in-person worship, especially as His return draws nearer.

Not coincidentally, our Pastor’s Sunday morning message on the day after I slept in on Saturday was about faithfulness. Praise God for His faithfulness to us, for every good gift comes from Him; without Him we can do nothing; and with Him all things are possible. In thankfulness and obedience to Him, we too must be faithful, reliable, and dependable in our service.

As the apostle Paul urges us, may we be stedfast, unmoveable, and ever abounding in our work for the Lord! (1 Corinthians 15:58). May we be “not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord (Romans 12:11). May we be like the wise virgins, always prepared for Jesus Christ’s imminent return, knowing that He will reward us for our faithfulness!  May we hear Him say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant!” (Matthew 25:21)

Laurie Collett

Copyright 2025

Faith Revealed

 

Photo by Tuxyso 2013

More than a decade ago, as my husband and I set off to Las Vegas to celebrate our 25^th wedding anniversary, we were excited yet a little apprehensive. We had been invited to perform a Theatre Arts solo exhibition at a ballroom dance celebration, and we were planning to dance our Christian ministry piece, “Transformed,” which uses the imagery of a caterpillar becoming a butterfly as a metaphor for salvation to eternal life (Romans 12:2). In our dance ministry, we often perform to largely unsaved audiences in secular settings. Yet we had never performed at the ballroom of a Las Vegas casino, so we prayed especially fervently that our message would be well received.

Added to that was the usual struggle of trying to tie up loose ends before we left home for a week, praying that our businesses would run smoothly and especially that our loved ones would be healthy and safe. Our son was suffering with a bad cold that kept him out of work for a few days and prevented us from getting together before we left. My husband’s mother, over 90 years old, had many chronic medical conditions that had caused her to be in and out of the hospital.

As our anniversary was in January, we were in the peak of snow and ice storms and bad weather, and numerous flights had been cancelled or delayed within days before our scheduled departure. It even crossed my mind that we might not make it to Vegas in time for our performance!

But as we left Tampa in unusually brisk 30 degree weather, we were relieved to be dressed in our long coats and even more blessed to have safe, on-time flights and arrival, so our fears were unfounded (1 John 4:18). Although the weather in Las Vegas had been chilly the week before, we were blessed with mild, sunny weather for most of our stay.

The gentleman who had invited us to perform, whom we had only met on one occasion several years before, could not have been a more gracious host, treating us to many meals and driving us around to see many sights that would not have been possible without a car.

We saw David Copperfield’s show and were astounded by one illusion in which he blindfolded a woman from the audience and had her wander under a canopy of 100 ribbons, each tied to a different word provided by 100 other audience members. Another audience member started and stopped a recording of music whenever she wanted to, and when she stopped, the blindfolded woman stopped and reached up with her hand to grab the nearest word. Of all the words (some proper names, some common objects, and some emotions) she could have selected, she chose the word “FAITH!”

I know that magic tricks have a logical explanation and are not miracles or evidence of supernatural power. Yet I was encouraged by this gentle reminder, regardless of the setting, that all we need is to have faith (Matthew 17:20; 21:21), trusting and obeying God whether or not we see His hand at work. But David Copperfield’s illusion had just begun, and he asked the audience to raise our hands high in the air. As we had entered the theatre, we had been given white paper bracelets printed in black with “David Copperfield.” But now as we raised our hands high, black light shone on our bracelets to reveal the word “FAITH” appearing in fluorescent letters on each outstretched wrist!

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1), and without faith it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6). But this got me thinking that every now and then, perhaps more often than we even notice, God gives us little glimpses of faith revealed (Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:23). We do not need signs (Matthew 16:4) to know that God loves us and is working all things together for our good (Romans 8:28). Still, I believe that He paints loving pictures to encourage and calm us, just as a parent might tuck a thoughtful note in their child’s lunch box to remind them how much they are loved.

Praise God for His faithfulness (Deuteronomy 7:9; Psalm 89:8; Isaiah 25:1; 1 Corinthians 1:9; 10:13)! This was manifest to us when all aspects of our performance came together beautifully, despite jet lag, lack of recent rehearsal, and what I thought might be a stomach flu and migraine I experienced that morning. We danced to a full house and very appreciative audience, and God allowed us to testify to His goodness and power of salvation, not only through our dance but verbally as well. Our prayer is that hearts were softened to Him as seed was planted (Matthew 13:3-32).

We had many exciting outings planned for the remainder of our trip, including seeing several Cirque de Soleil shows and walking around the magnificently decorated hotel lobbies. It is almost like walking around the world, as you can see replicas of the Eiffel Tower, Empire State Building, Venetian canals, and the Coliseum all in the same day! But lest you think otherwise, we do not drink, smoke or gamble, and I joked that our stay may have set a record for the longest vacation in Las Vegas without a penny spent in a casino!

Our faith would be tested yet again, as one morning as we were traveling to see the Hoover Dam, Richard got a phone call from his sister. His mother had just been readmitted to the hospital for low blood sugar and pneumonia, but his sister reassured us that she would handle things and that we should not cut our trip short.

Naturally we were concerned, but as I gazed out the window at the blue, cloudless sky, I was blessed to see a perfect, white cross, perhaps left by two intersecting jet trails. Yet there was no fading off of the lines at their ends, and the arms of the cross were in exact proportion and right angled to the upright beam. Without Christ’s finished work on the cross to pay for our sins, and His resurrection to eternal life, which conquered the curse of sin and death, there would be no physical or spiritual healing (John 11:25-26; Romans 3:25; 1 John 2:2; 4:10). 

He is the Great Physician, and we can trust Him to rid our bodies of the curse of sin (Psalm 147:3), whether through His design for recuperation and disease-fighting He has programmed into us (Psalm 139:14; Hosea 6:1), or through taking us to Himself where we feel no pain, sickness, or suffering (Isaiah 25:8; Revelation 7:17; 21:4).

The third reminder of faith revealed was at the Grand Canyon, at Eagle Point where the rock formation resembles the outstretched wings of a giant eagle. This of course brought to mind Isaiah 40:31, which has always been a special verse for us in our dance ministry: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

As we left this breathtaking view I was surprised to see a small rainbow from the bus window. These always remind me of God’s faithfulness to keep His promises (Genesis 9:12-17), and yet this one was extraordinary, not for its size or beauty, but because it was there at all! We were told it hadn’t rained for weeks; there were no clouds in the sky; and typically it only rains briefly on 10 days out of the year in Las Vegas, for a total annual rainfall of less than 2 inches. Truly a dry and thirsty land (Psalm 63:1), thirsty not only for rain but for the Living Water of Jesus Christ (Song of Solomon 4:15; John 4:10-11; Revelation 7:17), and yet God gave us a rainbow!

On the last day of our vacation, we were in fact treated to a 5-minute rain shower, followed by one of the largest, most brilliant rainbows I have ever seen, particularly resplendent as it stretched out over the blue and purple mountains outside the city. As we admired it, we reflected on God’s grace in arranging all details of our journey to make it a much-needed time of refreshing and renewal of our vows to one another, to our ministries, and to Him.

He saw us safely home to Tampa, and thankfully we traveled not on the day of, but on the day immediately following, massive delays and cancellations due to severe weather in Atlanta, and our flights were safe and only 30 minutes late. Richard’s mother was stable, and we were able to spend quality time with her in her last days, as He ultimately brought her safely home to Himself shortly thereafter, on Valentine’s Day. Once again a beautiful reminder of His perfect love, so great that He gave His only Son so that whosoever trusts in Him will never die, but will enjoy eternal life! (John 3:16)

 
Richard’s mother was saved very late in life, and it was our prayer that her memorial service would lead others to know Him. May we all continue to witness to and pray for those who do not yet know Christ, no matter how old or set in their ways, as nothing is impossible for Him!  (Matthew 19:26) May we not grow weary of doing His work, for if we persist, we will see the harvest in His perfect timing! (Galatians 6:9)

© 2014 Laurie Collett

Edited and reposted from the archives