Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.
Deuteronomy 31:6
Toddlers love to launch out on walks by themselves. They walk ahead of their parent without looking back—except when they do look back. Without fail a toddler will glance backward or even stop and turn around as if to say, “Are you still with me?” Once assured of the parent’s presence, he forges ahead.
We are like toddlers in that we need to be assured of God’s presence, especially during difficult times. We can’t turn around and see Him, but we can read the promises of His presence in Scripture. When the Israelites were about to invade the Promised Land, Moses assured them that God would be with them (Deuteronomy 31:6). The psalmist David wrote that God was with him even in “the valley of the shadow of death” where “goodness and mercy” were always following him (Psalm 23:4, 6). And Jesus said, “I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20).
You are never alone if you belong to Christ. He is there to share your burdens and guide your steps.
I would rather walk with God in the dark than go alone in the light.
How many times do we walk alone each day without giving a single thought to the presence of God, listening for the Holy Spirit’s leading, or being concerned with honoring and glorifying Jesus Christ in all our thoughts, words, and actions?
We may be thinking about not doing something or doing something that seems right in our own eyes for the purpose of being made right before God. In some way, we think we can do enough good or not do enough bad to help out our standing before God.
We are justified, cleansed, purified, adopted, born again, made new, and filled with the gift of the Holy Spirit by and through Jesus Christ’s death on the cross for our sins. We can’t add to this. This free gift is by God’s grace, mercy, and love. We can easily agree to this, yet we attempt to add to our worth before God by what we do or not do.
I think the root cause of this has to do with being neglectful and complacent with God’s Word and conversely mindful of our purpose on this side of eternity, to honor and glorify Jesus Christ in all thoughts, words, and actions. This lukewarm path makes the light of justification in Jesus Christ grow dimmer and dimmer to the point where we think we need to add to it. Not only does this light grow dimmer, but the sanctifying growth in our lives by and through the Holy Spirit’s leading fades into nonexistence. Self-examination without the influence of God’s Word and the Holy Spirit will lead us to think about doing or not doing certain things as a means to being more worthy of being justified before God.
If we are to walk in the presence of God, let us keep our eyes on Him. Let us read His Word with desire and hunger to know more and more about His grace, mercy, and love. Let us grow in this understanding and learn to discern the quiet whispers of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Let us purpose deep within our hearts and minds to honor and glorify Jesus Christ in all thoughts. words, and actions.
