The Lord Stood with me...

2 Timothy 4:16-17: "At my first defense no one stood with me, but all forsook me. May it not be charged against them. But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me..."

Have you ever felt alone and abandoned by your friends? Have you ever been abandoned by your friends? Paul did. He tells us in 2 Timothy 4, that his real friends left to take care of other business, but his supposed friends left without a word. His "defense" is when he stood before Emperor Nero for the first time, a time when it would be nice to have friends stand with you.

Jesus knew what it was like to have His friends forsake Him as well (Matthew 26:56, Mark 14:50).

I also know what it is like to have your "friends" abandon you. It's painful; it hurts. We all have felt that pain.

What I appreciate about what Paul wrote to Timothy is his comment that, "...the Lord stood with me." What a great reminder. Several times the Lord promised Paul that He would be with him. Here we see that God keeps His promises.

Paul wrote in Hebrews Hebrews 13:5-6:

"Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.' So we may boldly say:'The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?'"

Now it is interesting that in verse 5 there is, in the Greek, a double negative and a triple negative, so that it literally reads, "I will never, never leave you, I will never, never, never forsake you. What a wonderful promise from our Faithful God.

Remember, the next time you feel alone and abandoned, the Lord is standing with you...