“It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” - Deuteronomy 31:8
Not too long ago I was at a point in my life where I felt abandoned by God. It felt as if God had brought me to a point in my life where He had left me stranded. I found myself angry and bitter at God, crying out, “God are you still there?”, “Do you feel my pain, do you know my hurt?”, “God do you even care about me?”.
I imagine that similar thoughts ricocheted around in the minds of the Israelites, as they sat across the Jordan on the other side of the land that God had promised them. They were finally just on the other side of what was promised after wandering in the desert. Yet, foreign nations inhabited the land that they were promised. They would have to dispossess the other nations from the land God had promised them. Certainly not an easy task for people that had been wandering in the desert for many years.
So many ways in my life I felt like God had brought me just to the other side of promised, so close I could see it. Yet, He has not let me cross that Jordan into the promise. While I still do not understand why God brought me to this point in my life, I know that it hurt me. That hurt turned to anger against God, and I felt as if He had left me in my hurt.
Then, in the midst of my hurt and anger, as He often does in my life, God began to get my attention. Subtly at first, in one of those Sunday morning sermons where you know the Holy Spirit is speaking to you. Then more profoundly, with a rainbow that I happened to see as I was driving home on that same Sunday evening. See, God was reminding me of His promises, and how He keeps them. He was reminding me, much like Moses reminded Joshua and all of Israel that the Lord will never leave us or forsake us.
So, whether I find myself wandering in the desert, or just sitting on what feels like the other side of promise, I will remember that the Lord will never leave me. Even when the enemy tries to convince me otherwise, I know that my God keeps His promises and He is faithful till the end.
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