In this Prayer for Prodigals ministry, we have thanked God so many times for His being there with our prodigals. He is Jehovah Shammah, The LORD Is There, and we count on His being there with them, never leaving them or forsaking them, staying married to them (Jeremiah 3:14).

He is also here. right here, against me, in me, in the room with me, very present. He is here. You can say the same thing about God in your space. (See a previous blog, “Here.”)

And not only is He there and here, but He is also there, a different there that is a huge comfort to us. Let me explain.

The unknown can feel very scary. Thinking of the distant future, and even the very near future, can leave us feeling fearful. Because of experiences, the thought of phone calls and visits can be unsettling. We trust the promises God has given us, but what about the time between now and when those promises are fulfilled, when we see them with our eyes, not just with our faith?

While God is omnipresent, present in all places, present in all of His mighty expanse, He is also present in all times. As Isaiah 57:15 tells us, He “inhabits eternity” (NKJV), and Jesus said, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20, emphasis added).

So, whatever we dread, whatever is unknown, whatever experience has taught us, let’s remember that the Lord did not leave us in times past. It may have been hard, but He helped us. He was our “very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1), and He is still our “very present help in trouble.” Also, as we are about to see, He goes before us.

In fact, Jehovah Shammah, The LORD Is There, is already there, already working, waiting for our arrival to that time. This is powerfully revealed in Deuteronomy 31:8: “‘And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed’” (emphasis added).

Isn’t that such a comfort? We don’t have to fear the future or be dismayed because of what may or may not happen, because the same God who has faithfully been with us in very difficult situations will be with us in the future, whether it is hard or celebratory!

We can trust Him to always—in all times—be with us!

He is always with us all… there, here, and there!