A serene moment captured as two hands reach out against a soft, blurred background.

Present

God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. – Psalms 46:1

What does it mean that God is a “very present help”? This article explores the significance of God’s presence — not as a distant promise, but as an immediate reality for every believer in every circumstance.

God assures every believer that He is a very present (/ˈprez.ənt/) help in trouble. He is not a distant or delayed help, but an immediate, current one. This verse is a declaration of God’s nature.

There is more in this word “present” than first meets the eye. The word “present” can also be read as “pre-sent”. This suggests that His help is pre-sent, and proactive, not reactive. For whatever challenge a believer faces, His help was already sent ahead of time. Before the trouble arrived, the help was already there.

A third dimension emerges when “present” is read as a verb (/prɪˈzent/). “Present” as in make a presentation, make manifest and make know (His help). The dictionary defines it as “give, provide or make something known”. God does not merely provide help quietly in the background. He presents it by making His help visible, tangible and undeniable.

Together these three dimensions reveal something remarkable about how God works. His help is present — current and immediate. It is pre-sent — provided ahead of time. And He will present it — make it manifest at the right moment. God is the same yesterday, today and forevermore (Hebrews 13:8) and that He is a God who delivered us, does deliver us and will still deliver us (2 Corinthians 1:10,11).

who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us, you also helping together in prayer for us, that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the gift granted to us through many.
– 2 Corinthians 1:10,11

The story below is a simple but striking illustration of exactly this. Read it and see how all three dimensions of God’s present help show up — not as theology on a page, but as lived reality.

STORY

Dr. Abraham, a well known cancer specialist, was once on his way to an important conference in another city where he was going to receive an award in the field of medical research.

He was excited about the award and so boarded a plane to the venue. However, two hours after the plane took off, it made an emergency landing at the nearest airport due to a technical problem.

Afraid that he would not make it in time to the conference, he immediately went to the reception to make enquiries. He found out that he would have to wait ten hours for the next flight to his destination! He rented a car and drove himself to the conference city which was four hours away.

Soon after he left, the weather changed and a heavy storm began. The downpour made it difficult for him to see so he missed a turn he was supposed to take.

Driving in the heavy rain on a deserted road, feeling hungry and tired, he frantically began to look for any sign of civilization. He came across a small tattered house and knocked on the door. A beautiful lady opened the door. He explained his situation and wanted to use the lady’s telephone but she had no telephone. She however asked him to come inside and wait till the weather improved. The doctor who was hungry and exhausted accepted the offer. The lady offered him something to eat and drink.

She asked him to join her in prayers but he declined. According to him, he believed in hard work, not in prayers! Sitting at the table and sipping his tea, the doctor watched the woman pray many times beside a baby’s crib. Feeling that the woman might be in need of help, the doctor asked her what exactly she needed from God and asked if God ever listened to her prayers.

When he inquired of the child in the crib, the woman explained that her son was down with cancer. And they had been advised to see a doctor named Abraham who could cure him but she did not have enough money to afford his fees.

She said that God had not yet answered her prayers but said that God would create some way out one day. She added that she would not allow her fears to overcome her faith!

Stunned and speechless, Dr. Abraham began to weep! He was forced to say out loud, “GOD IS GREAT” and recollected to the woman, all the sequence of bad events: malfunction on the plane, a thunderstorm and how he lost his way. All of which had happened because God answers prayers, wanted to give him a chance to come out of his bondage of materialistic career pursuit and give some time to a poor, helpless woman who had nothing but rich prayers! God brought the Doctor to her door……

Oh! What a God! God may not answer your prayers YOUR WAY but he will always answer HIS way. Behind the scenes, he will move men, the weather, events, circumstances, etc. in order to work out the best for you!

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
– Corinthians 15:57

Jehovah Shammah – The LORD is there

Jehovah Shammah – The LORD is there

All the way around shall be eighteen thousand cubits; and the name of the city from that day shall be: THE LORD IS THERE.”

THE LORD is THERE.

– Ezekiel 48:35

Jehovah Shammah — “The LORD is there” — is one of the least familiar names of God, yet it appears at the close of Ezekiel’s vision as the defining name of a restored city.

What does this name reveal about God’s nature and His promise to always be present with His people? Most believers are familiar with the more often repeated names of God such as “Jehovah Rapha”, “Jehovah Jireh”, “Jehovah Nissi” and The Lord of Hosts. (Blue Letter Bible has a good quick overview of the Names of God in the Old Testament for those who want to explore further).

This name surfaces at the end of one of the more fascinating books of Scripture. Ezekiel is filled with intriguing visions and remarkable prophecies — among them, an intricate description of a restored temple with dimensions that stretch the imagination. And yet after all of that, the entire book closes with five words: “The LORD is THERE.”

This reads like a precious declaration and end to the chapter, end to the book, that “The LORD is there”. After all the visions, all the measurements, all the prophecy, the final word is simply His presence.

What makes this even more striking is that in the original Hebrew, the word “is” is in italics, meaning in the original translation, the italicised word was not included. It was added by translators for readability. The text simply reads “The LORD there” as though presence itself needs no verb.

A word study reveals the depth behind this name of God – Jehovah Shammah. This only appears once in the bible and Blue Letter Bible explains the meaning and derivation as follows:
Jehovah is translated as “The Existing One” or “Lord.” The chief meaning of Jehovah is derived from the Hebrew word Havah meaning “to be” or “to exist.” It also suggests “to become” or specifically “to become known” – this denotes a God who reveals Himself unceasingly. Shammah is derived from the Hebrew word sham, which can be translated as “there.” Jehovah Shammah is a symbolic name for the earthly Jerusalem. The name indicates that God has not abandoned Jerusalem, leaving it in ruins, but that there will be a restoration.

In the Old Testament, in Ezekiel’s day, the phrase “The LORD is there” is a forward-looking promise. It might read like God is there, but not here. Today, post the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, the presence of the Lord is not “there” but “here”, real and tangible through the Holy Spirit, the Promise of the Father given after the resurrection of Jesus (John 16:7). The word of God affirms this:

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?
– 1 Corinthians 6:19

Jehovah Shammah is not merely an Old Testament promise looking forward to a restored Jerusalem. For the believer today, it is a present reality. The LORD is not there — He is here. In you. The temple is no longer a building with measurements and dimensions. It is every believer in whom the Holy Spirit dwells.

When this name is seen in that light, it becomes one of the most personal assurances in all of Scripture — a God who does not abandon, who restores, and whose presence is not distant but immediate, not symbolic but real. The believer is the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21), is accepted in the Beloved (Ephesians 1:6) and in Him, the believer lives and moves and have their being! (Acts 17:28).