How do I know God loves me?

How do I know God loves me?

We are constantly told, “God loves you.” God is love. All of that can just seem like it’s theoretical, especially in difficult times. Where is His love then? How do I know God loves me?

In those moments when life becomes overwhelming, when you sit alone, head in your hands thinking to yourself, where is God now? Tears are spilling down your cheeks. You just lost your job. You just lost a friend. You had a really rough day. Maybe you’ve had a long stretch of bad luck. Maybe someone did something to hurt you. Maybe you are so fed up with who you are, you think that you are not worthy of His love. There are so many reasons that can come up that cause a person to doubt God’s love; to question if He is even looking after you at all.

God knows you better than you know yourself

When these kinds of thoughts loom up and threaten to overwhelm you, the best possible prescription is to turn to the Word of God. There is abundant proof that God loves you in the wisdom written there. King David wrote:

“O Lord, you have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, but behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.” Psalm 139:1-4.

This is the God that you have. One who knows you better than you know yourself. He knows about every situation in your life. He has never abandoned anyone. He holds each of His precious creations in the palm of His hand. (Isaiah 49:15-16)

“For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.
I will praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are your works, and that my soul knows very well.” Psalm 139:13-14.

“How precious also are your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!” Psalm 139:17.

Jesus tells us that not a sparrow falls to the ground apart from the Father’s will. (Matthew 10:29-31) How much more does He look after and carefully follow those whom He made in His own image? (Genesis 1:27)

I will not leave you nor forsake you

When we come into those difficult times in our lives it is not because God is not taking care of us; it is not because He has abandoned us. God has planned each of our lives carefully, down to the last detail. His plan for us is for our salvation. To make us rely on Him, and not on our own human capabilities. And when we come into these times, He does not leave us on our own.

He sent His beloved Son into the world so that we could have a High Priest who can sympathize with us in our weakness. Because of this tremendous gift of love that God has given us, we can obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need, at the throne of grace. (Hebrews 4:16) Go to that throne of grace in those times. You will find that the Father and the Son are right there waiting for you to ask.

Then you will discover that your Lord will be with you, just as He was with Joshua all those years ago.

“As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and of good courage.” Joshua 1:5-6.

This doesn’t mean that the hard times will disappear. It means that you will find the strength, the courage, the grace to get through these times. God is with you, and your sympathetic High Priest is praying for you every step of the way. (Hebrews 7:25) Then you will come through your trials as precious gold that has been tried by fire, the end result being the salvation of your soul. That’s how much God loves us. He has every moment planned for our salvation. And He will never give you more than you can bear. (1 Corinthians 10:13)

A God of compassion

God knows us, and He has compassion on our weakness. He is not a hard, unjust God. He is righteous, and He is moved with compassion for us. He is our biggest supporter; no one wants it to succeed for us more than He does. Believe in that. Believe in the wonderfully uplifting words He spoke through the prophet Jeremiah:

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you,
And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-13.

He is with you every moment of every day, and loves you more than you can fathom. (Romans 8:38-39)