God’s Promises

The theme for MVC Sisters this year is God’s Promises. Today we are going to look at the promise that God will never leave you or forsake you.

This comes from Deuteronomy 31:6, which says, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.”

This verse is from when Moses told the Israelites that they would soon be moving into the land God had promised them and that Moses would actually die before they got there. So, this is said at a time when Israel is about to lose the man who has been leading them through all of their problems. The man that they always turn to for help is leaving. But Moses tells them, God will never leave you.

Moses says the same thing again in Deuteronomy 31:8. This verse then appears again in the New Testament, Hebrews 13:5.

During the time period the Bible was written, putting words in bold or underlining phrases wasn’t really a thing yet. So, to make sure people knew the message was extremely important, the authors of the Bible would repeat the phrase multiple times.

And that’s what happens with this promise, so we know that this verse is probably something we should pay close attention to.

The word forsake means to abandon, renounce, or give up on someone. So, Moses is saying that as God’s people, will we never truly be alone. God is always with us. Chasing after us. Searching for us. And wanting to know us more.

God wants to hear from us. He wants to hear how we’re feeling and how our day is going. He, of course, already knows how it's going, but He asks anyway, out of love. His Presence is with us wherever we go. We are never alone.

Some of you might find that really comforting. Maybe you have lost someone or something that matters to you, like how the Israelites had to say goodbye to their leader Moses.

It can be really easy to feel alone and overwhelmed right now with everything going on. There have been times during quarantine where I have felt that I had to figure everything out on my own, and I often felt hopeless on those days.

If you are going through that, know that God loves you so much, and He’s going to be right there with you through all of it. He wants to help you and be there for you, so you don’t have to feel that way. As I was writing this devotional, even just writing about God made me feel so much less overwhelmed and alone.

Some of you might find it overwhelming or scary that God is with you all the time. And that’s ok too. God is powerful, but He also adores you so much, and you could never do anything to stop the love He has for you. Nothing. There is nothing you could ever do to stop Him from loving you.

God is with you every minute of the day, so He has seen everything you’ve ever done. And He still looks at you with complete love and forgiveness, and that’s because Jesus died for you.

When you pray and accept Jesus as your Savior, all of God’s promises become true for you. Including the one we’re talking about today. Once Jesus becomes a part of your life, He will never leave you, because He loves you so much and wants to look out for you.

So, if you are wondering whether or not you want Jesus to be in your life, know that He so badly wants to be in yours. He’s there with you right now, wanting to hear from you.

If you do have Jesus in your life, know that He loves you beyond measure and that you have no reason to be afraid of what you are facing today, because God is going to be there with you through all of it. No matter how messy your life gets, He is always going to be there to love you.

-Rachel