One of the most comforting truths in all of Scripture is this: God is with us. His presence is not limited by time, space, or circumstance. The psalmist puts it this way:
“Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.” (Psalm 139:7–10)
We call this doctrine omnipresence — God is everywhere fully present. That truth may sound abstract, but it is meant to be deeply personal. For the believer, it means you are never truly alone, even in your darkest hours.
Unlike us, God is not bound by a body or limited to one place at a time. He is not simply very large or far-reaching; He is uncontainable. He fills heaven and earth (Jeremiah 23:24). He holds all things together (Colossians 1:17).
This means there is no hiding place from Him, no corner of the universe that He does not fill. But for the Christian, that is not a threat — it is a promise. The same God who is everywhere present has pledged Himself in covenant love to His people: “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).
It is often in sorrow that God’s omnipresence shines brightest. When grief weighs heavy, when fear grips the heart, or when loneliness isolates us, we may be tempted to feel abandoned. But feelings do not alter reality. God’s presence is not fragile or fickle.
A.W. Tozer once wrote:
“This truth is to the convinced Christian a source of deep comfort in sorrow and of steadfast assurance in all the varied experiences of life.”
Even when you cannot sense Him, God is there. He is closer to you than your thoughts. He is with you in the doctor’s office, in the hospital bed, in the quiet of your tears, in the funeral home, and in the long nights of uncertainty. The hand that formed the universe is the same hand that holds you when you feel like falling.
God’s presence is not only comfort in sorrow; it is also a source of joy. Tozer again:
“This certainty that God is always near us, present in all parts of His world, closer to us than our thoughts, should maintain us in a state of high moral happiness most of the time.”
But that doesn’t mean Christians never suffer. As Tozer wisely observed, “As a child may cry out in pain even when sheltered in its mother’s arms, so a Christian may sometimes know what it is to suffer even in the conscious presence of God.”
That picture is powerful. Just as a child can be both hurting and held, we can grieve while still knowing that God’s arms surround us. His omnipresence does not eliminate suffering, but it does transform it. Our tears are not shed in isolation. Our cries are not unheard.
The reality of God’s omnipresence secures our assurance. Because He is present everywhere, He is present with you.Because He fills heaven and earth, He fills the space you inhabit right now. And because He is unchanging, His presence does not come and go like the shifting moods of men.
The psalmist’s conclusion is ours as well: “Even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me”(Psalm 139:10).
Christian, you may feel forgotten. You may feel alone. You may walk through valleys where no friend can follow and no family can fully understand. But you cannot escape the presence of the God who loves you. He is there in the light and in the dark, in joy and in sorrow, in life and in death.
The truth of omnipresence means this: you are never alone.