225. BE STRONG AND OF A GOOD COURAGE

(The Faith Forum Series – Batch 4)

As I drew close to concluding the book of Deuteronomy in my morning Devotions about two or three days ago, one verse from the five Chapters I had read that morning, stood out to me. It was a verse that I had read countless times before but it was a beautiful reminder to me of the God that I served and that placing confidence in him in whatever we go through in life, is not a confidence that is misplaced.

The verse was Deuteronomy 31:6, where Moses, getting ready to depart the scene, told the Israelites: “Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”

It dawned on me that Moses was telling the Israelites that they should be strong and courageous and should not fear or be afraid because of three (3) reasons, namely:

The Lord God would go with them and therefore be with them;
He would not forsake or abandon them, ever; and
He would not fail them but would come through for them.

This morning, I read Joshua Chapter 1 and was surprised to see that, after the death of Moses, God told Joshua the very same thing in terms of his leading the Israelites to the Promised Land. In verses 5-6, God told him:

“There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.”

Once again therefore, someone, this time Joshua, was being encouraged to be strong and of a good courage and the reasons were the same:

God would be with him;
God would not forsake him;
God would not fail him.

This is what relationship with God and being in the presence of God, should produce. Once we know that he is with us, fear should banish and instead, we should be courageous, not because of our own strength but because of HIS.

The Word of God says “Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength.” (Isaiah 26:4) and that when it comes to us obtaining victory, it is “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord…” (Zechariah 4:6).

God is not a God that ever fails and he has committed himself to being with us, promising to never leave or forsake us.

Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2) and he has promised, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” (Hebrews 13:5). In Matthew 28:20, he told his disciples after he had risen from the dead and appeared to them and was about to ascend back up to heaven, “…lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

The Lord’s character of strength, faithfulness and commitment when it comes to his children is comforting, as, he does not only mean what he says but always follows through with it, without fail.

It dawned on me this morning as I read the scripture in Joshua, that many men, hoping to court and marry a woman, make the promise or imply from their actions, that their heart is with the subject of their interest and that they will never forsake her or fail her. Yet, many of them don’t keep their word, lose interest, abandon the woman and leave her to fend for herself. Others may remain but they prove to be failures, breaking the lady’s heart in countless ways, betraying her trust or just ending up being a disappointment.

Not so with God. He has said that he is with us (those who believe on his Son Jesus), that he will be with us for our entire lifetime and even beyond and that he will never disappoint us or let us down. He has our spiritual best interest at heart and so, whatever he does or doesn’t do on our part or give or withhold, it is with this noble motivation in mind.

I completed my devotion (which again centred on the verses in Joshua that talked about being strong and of a good courage because of God’s presence and the fact that he would never forsake him or fail him) and I went about my day.

Tonight however, in looking at the draft section of my Website to figure out where I had saved two draft Articles recently, I found a third which I had begun writing on May, 2021, almost a year ago.

The draft Article I had begun to write on contained one simple paragraph but it was effective, as it was closely related to what I had been reading and meditating on for the past two or so days.

Coincidence? I didn’t think so. I felt that God had impressed the two portions of scriptures in Deuteronomy and Joshua, upon my heart and was now allowing me to read what I had written almost a year ago, along the same vein, for a reason. He wanted me in my own circumstance, to be strong and courageous, to not be afraid or fearful no matter what I faced because (1) He was with me; (2) He would not forsake me, ever and (3) He would not fail me.

2 Timothy 1:12 states: “I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.”

The untitled Article comprising of one unfinished paragraph, read:

He is rooting for you. He wants you to win. He has promised to never forsake you. He does not lie. He keeps his word. He wants what is best for you even if you don’t understand why you’re going through what you’re going through and why you’re called to bear a particular burden or burdens. He can be trusted. His faithfulness never wan(es).

Thank you Lord. Father in heaven, of a truth, I have been through much and am still going through things of which I don’t fully understand why. There are days that I have been feeling weary, overwhelmed and even afraid. Yet, I know that you love me, that your will is perfect, your Word is true and you are the Sovereign God, in absolute control of the entire Universe and all powerful. Therefore, you having given me your word, as derived from your Word the Bible, I know that you are committed to seeing me through this life and will never forsake or fail me, no matter how things look.

Help me to face all that I have to face with strength and courage and may every victory I attain, redound to your honour and glory, where it rightly deserves to be, in the name of Jesus Christ my Lord I ask this, Amen.

(Written on 16th April, 2022) (SEE RELATED ARTICLES BELOW)

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