“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”- Deuteronomy 31:8 (NIV).
Naughtiness can end up with you in trouble, particularly for one in a strict boarding school. Looking back at my school life I often wonder how I managed to survive expulsion, given a persistent troublesome streak. I particularly recall one incident where after a public spurt that went viral and threatened the power at my school I was but done. Sensing danger, I hurried to talk to the Head Prefect and a number of influential friends to go ahead of me and plead my case, just before the disciplinarian Headmaster summoned me. Ushered into his presence, finnaly, instead of a suspension or expulsion, the Headmaster gave me some minor potter for my crimes. My escape was because someone had gone ahead of me and pleaded my case.
As Moses was about to hand over his commission to his anointed successor, Joshua, he took all back to how the Lord had gone ahead of them. “The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, and in the wilderness. There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place” (Deuteronomy 1:30-31). Few there, who had seen the way the Israelites had overcome their enemies, could doubt that because of that they had lived to acknowledge the faithfulness of God.
Yet, there was also a caveat. Moses warned the Israelites, “If you ever forget the Lord your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed. Like the nations the Lord destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 8:19-20).
There are certainly clear advantages where the Almighty God goes ahead of us, which is His expressed desire, in whatever battle we may face. Is it our applications about to be vetted- we need the Lord to go ahead of us! Perhaps there are those who are falsely accusing us in our absence- we need the Lord Almighty to go ahead of us and plead our case. Are we about to take on a long journey- who wouldn’t love the Lord to go ahead of him!
But much as this is a given, there is one simple condition. We must earn that right by being obedient to the Lord, lest his anger burns against us, leaving us to our helpless defenses. And who would choose that!
Prayer for today: Lord Father God of Abraham, maker of heaven and earth, as you promised to go ahead of the Israelites, I too, pray that in obedience to your commands you always go ahead of me, whatever the occasion, and fight my battles, this I pray in Jesus’s name.
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06/05/2024 - 07/05/2024 All day“Do not confirm to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is- his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2)
Almost all cultivators are aware that if soils are used perpetually without rains but constantly under work they are deprived of all nutrients. So, though once productive, they lose all power to yield fresh crops as before. But so is our Christian life when we do not regularly feed our spirit life with the Word!
In our leading verse, the Apostle Paul is urging believers to “renew” their minds rather than make them stale, lest they end up losing all power to yield fruit. But how is this done? We renew our minds by constantly reading the Word of God, for there are always insights with God speaking to us afresh. Psalm 119:104-5 says, “I gain understanding from your precepts; therefore I hate every wrong path. Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” The Apostle Peter reminds us, “Like newborn babies hungry for milk, you should want the pure teaching that feeds your spirit. With it you can grow and be saved.” It is a beautiful illustration for any who have seen a hungry baby sucking the teats of a mother.
Renewing our minds is also by reading about the lives of people of faith who have walked before us and their created works. The Christian faith started in the first century after Jesus was crucified and resurrected from the dead. Now over two millenniums it has produced giants of faith who have shared their walk with God through inspired teachings that are a treasure to dig into. By scouring the writings of the great saints before us, listening to their recorded sermons, songs and preaching, which these days can be found on virtual medial channels like Yu tube, reading their biographies, our faith is renewed.
And then we also renew our faith through fellowship. When the Apostle Paul urges us, “not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” ( Hebrews 10:25), he is reminding us that our faith cannot grow in isolation. During the Covid pandemic lockdown one bitter issue was denying Believers opportunity to meet fellow followers of Christ to share testimonies showing the work of God in their lives.
So today, if your faith is on a low keel, or you want it to flower, one thing you can’t help doing without is “renewing” your mind. The blessings to unfold are endless.
Prayer for today:Lord Father God of Abraham, maker of heaven and earth, what a treasure we have of your rich Word to dig into always; books around us of faith to inspire us; and believers to share our faith- may we make use of these, this I pray in Jesus’ name.
