Deuteronomy 31:8 God Goes Before Us
Food for Thought
An all-creatures.org Guide to Kingdom Living

By Marni Montanez

Deuteronomy 31:8 (NIV)

8 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.”

God is reassuring the Israelites that all will be well.  He was removing Moses, not only as their leader, but from their midst and He knew the turmoil they were feeling.  This was a monumental change for these people who had relied on Moses for so long.  His voice was God’s voice; They knew and trusted that voice.  God was giving Moses much needed eternal rest and although He had appointed Joshua as Moses’ successor, God would rule and reign through this next leader as He did with Moses.  

Even today, when we face life altering changes in our life, these same words that were once spoken to comfort a people struggling with the changes they were facing, are the  same words God is using to calm our fears and anxieties.  It is always His intention for us to walk in His peace as we walk in Him.

This verse speaks volumes about God’s heart for us and His determination to help us see Him as He really is.   Not only is He always ahead of us carving out a path we are to travel on, but He is able to walk with us as we go through our intimate trials.  He is telling us that there is no reason to be afraid or discouraged because He’s not going to abandon us.  He has everything under control and all that is going to happen will happen under His watchful eye.

Whatever storms God is using in our life, it’s for a reason. Sometimes it is to strengthen us or change us or deal with a flaw in us.  Regardless of the reason for the time of suffering, His promise is that He will go through it with us and He will be with us in any and every circumstance; whether hard or easy.  This verse is a declaration of His complete and total willingness to be involved in our life.  God wants us to know Him and His heart.

He is a God of love and everything He allows or does is because of His love for us.  He has no hidden agenda.

God is with us and will always be with us every day of our life.

Challenge:  Sit alone and repeat this verse over and over until you feel His peace.

Look at your situation through this verse.  

God bless

Marni

Go on to: Do Not Answer Him
Return to: Food for Thought
Return to: Christian Living Articles

The purpose of this series is to encourage people to live as loving, compassionate, and peacemaking children of God: Jesus tells us to pray, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:10) God tells us through Micah (6:8), "He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God." And we know from Revelation 21:4 that there will be no more mourning, or crying, or pain, or death. Thus, Christian living requires us to set the standards of these conditions here on earth for our fellow human beings, and for the other animals, as a witness to the rest of the world. To do otherwise is not Christian.