We will talk about my favorite part of this verse today, can you guess what it is?
“The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” Dt 31:8 NIV
I will never leave you nor forsake you! What a glorious commitment from God. Now this does not mean we sense His Presence always, but our “feelings” are not truth. Our feelings change as quickly as the weather during a major storm! It is in these moments, when we cannot sense His Presence, when we might be tempted to wonder if God has turned His back on us, that this promise is priceless. Just because we do not detect His companionship, certainly does NOT mean He has abandoned us. It is you and me who must adjust our thinking so that we can be aware that He is with us, because this is what He has promised us. We walk by faith, not sight after all.
Let me give you another example, object lessons are so very helpful! So let’s say I am standing in front of you. You see me and I can see you. We are in each other’s presence. But what if some kind of noise behind me grabs my attention and I turn from you, looking behind me? Can I see you anymore? No, I have turned away to the opposite location of where you are still standing, and so, to me it can seem like you are not with me anymore. I am still in your presence, since you can still see me, but you are no longer in my presence, since I cannot see you anymore.
This is what too often happens to us and God. We turn away from Him then wonder, “God, where are You?!” Meanwhile God has not moved. He has not left us nor forsaken us…but have we left and forsaken Him? To sense His Presence again, all we have to do is turn around. Turn around. There’s another word for that, I hope you know it. Leave a comment below and we will continue tomorrow…
Join me in memorizing 52 verses this year:
January: 1- Jn 3:16; 2- 2Co 5:17; 3- Jas 2:26; 4- Eph 2:10
February: 5- Jn 10:10; 6- Ro 6:23; 7- Rev 21:4; 8- Php 4:13
March: 9- 1Pe 5:7; 10- Jn 8:32; 11- Dt 30:19; 12- Jn 3:30; 13- 2Chron 20:3
April: 14- 2Chron 20:12; 15- 2Chron 20:15b; 16- 2Chron 20:17
May: 17- Ro 8:28; 18- 1Co 13:13; 19- Php 2:12; 20- Mt 5:4
June: 21- Lk 23:42; 22- Jas 4:7; 23- Pr 22:6; 24- Mt 5:3; 25- Jn 14:6
26- Jas 2:19
27- Dt 31:8
<>< Peace, Diane
