One Wednesday night several years ago, my little Bible class student was unhappy. Very unhappy.

It wasn’t unusual for her to show up to class a little fussy. It was the end of the day, the middle of the week, sometimes she had fallen asleep in the car… But usually I could coax her into participating a little and she would cheer up.

But nothing worked that day. Not stickers. Not hugs. Not the promise of crafts and games. Not much-beloved Lambie.

I was stumped. If I tried to teach her anything, I would only be talking to myself and frustrating both of us, and she wouldn’t learn anything.

So I decided trying to make her feel loved was more important than forcing us through a lesson. I pulled extra coloring pages out of my folder and set out the nice markers. I found a playlist of worship songs on Youtube. And I sat beside her and colored and sang.

She begrudgingly started coloring, too.

It took about thirty of our allotted forty minutes, and most of my spare coloring pages, before she finally agreed to put a sticker on her attendance chart and started talking a little. In the end she left class happy.

I never found out what caused it all.

In retrospect, the whole scene made me think of God’s multitude of promises to be present. He never denies how upsetting life can be, but over and over and over and over he assures his people he will be with them. His presence is safety and comfort and love. Kind and fatherly and motherly. Reassuring. Helpful. He’s there.

Human relationships shape our perception of God in so many ways, some accurate, some inaccurate. Does my little student remember this incident? Probably not. But I hope I contributed well to her developing picture of what it’s like for God to be always present, even through the most upsetting of days.

But as for me, God’s presence is my good.
I have made the Lord God my refuge,
so I can tell about all you do.
– Psalm 73:28

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