Never Far Away

Thursday, January 10, 2013
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Listen while you read: "Hail The Day That Sees Him Rise"1 (Lyrics)

Deuteronomy 31:6 – 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. (NIV)

My Amish neighbours have a foal in their pasture whose mother is never far away. Sometimes, I even see the little one tied behind a buckboard that is rolling along our macadam roadway. It seems that the mare will not pull the buckboard anywhere without her foal going along. She is stuck to her baby like moss on a tree. She would never leave it behind, no matter how safe the fenced pasture might seem.

Similarly, God promised in Deuteronomy never to leave us nor forsake us. No matter where we might go, God will always accompany us. No matter what might happen, God will always be right beside us. Jesus made that clear when He spoke to His disciples in the upper room before His crucifixion.

He knew that life was just about to become very tough for them. He knew that He would be betrayed into the hands of the authorities and that He would suffer a great deal. Then He would die. He also knew that He would rise again to live eternally, but before that, life was going to get scary for the disciples. To reassure them, He said, "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you." (John 14:18 NIV)

In Jesus' time, orphans had no hope. Since Scriptural injunctions to care for the widows, the orphans, and the poor were seldom followed, being without a family beggared the orphan. In promising never to leave them as orphans, Jesus promised that God would always provide for them, not just spiritually, but physically and emotionally as well.

To ensure that the disciples understood this, Jesus also promised, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." (John 14:27 NIV) Knowing what was about to happen, Jesus realized that the reaction of His followers would be fear — major, big-time fear — such as we might experience in the split-second just before a car accident.

Jesus knew how scary such events could be for His disciples and for us. To reassure both them and us, Jesus promised that He would be with us both. The way that we would know that He was here would be His all-encompassing peace, the peace that passes understanding.

The next time when we are faced with a fearful situation, let us think about this: God will never leave us nor forsake us. Never will God our Father leave us fatherless, like an orphan. When we turn to God in prayer, He will always provide an amazing blanket of peace to warm our fear-chilled hearts.

Prayer: Father God, we praise You for Your promise never to leave us nor forsake us, no matter what causes us to shake with fear. We ask for Your blanket of peace, no matter what trouble comes our way, for we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

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About the author:

Cassandra Wessel <casswessel4319@gmail.com>
Tionesta, Pennsylvania, USA

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1 Comment

  • PresbyCan Feedback says:

    What a comfort this is today!!


    Thanks for a wonderful reminder Cass.


    Thank you Cass. Happy New Year!
    Wishing you and your loved ones a Healthy, Peace filled year ahead.


    Thanks for the reminder! Certainly it is of great value to know that the “peace that passes understanding is near me all the time.” May your days be filled and guided by this peace.


    Casandra, this is wonderful and I’m grateful you shared this with us. I enjoy what you share with us very much. May you continue to be blest with His love and peace.


    Dear Cassandra: Thank you for today’s message.
    You are right about the orphans.
    Blessings on you and yours.


    Happy New Year Cass! What a beautiful devotional you have written for us today. It is amazing how many times God uses animals and nature to help illustrate the love our Heavenly Father. This was a great message encouraging me to trust the Lord in a difficult situation.


    Hello Dear Cass
    I love this message. It conveys such a sense of peace. Anyone, these days especially, without God in their lives and hearts, must surely suffer great stress.
    May God continue to come alongside many through your calming messages.


    Thank you Cassandra for a most reassuring devotional. In days like these we are going through, it is a tonic to know that we have a Saviour who cares for us as well as the Amish mare cares for her foal. There are few words in Holy Writ as comforting as are; “I will never leave you nor forsake you!”. When one takes time to consider the greatness of God’s love for us; love which cannot be measured, one cannot but feel confident. We are not orphans at all but sons and daughters of the Most High, the One whose love passes all understanding.
    Blessings.


    Dear Cassandra,
    Thanks for your devotional centered around:
    Jesus also promised, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27 NIV)
    Knowing what was about to happen, Jesus realized that the reaction of His followers would be fear – major, big-time fear – such as we might experience in the split-second just before a car accident.
    Our Lord is right there with us. We praise and thank Him for his eternal peace.
    This devotional is great for pointing us toward Easter events too.
    Keep writing for Jesus’ sake.


    Thanks Cassandra,
    I just read your devotional in which you state that during a car accident there is only a split second to react within a fear filled moment.
    That exactly was the point of my potential deadly car accident. I had only a split second to react, but in human terms a collision was still unavoidable!
    But.. a deep calm came upon me and I swerved onto a gravel hard shoulder, leveled out and swerved back onto the highway, even though there was not sufficient space for this maneuver! The car heading straight for me and the car beside me going in the opposite direction both carried on along the road without any of us colliding! Truly a miracle of divine protection! thank You Jesus!!
    Blessings for 2013.


    Thank you for the beautiful reminder.


    Thank you for emphasizing the “blanket of peace”.
    God’s promise “I will never forsake you” sustains in all we do.


    Good Evening Cassandra:
    What a beautiful devotional assuring us God is indeed our great provider who is there to love, guide and protect us in every situation.
    So often we face stressful situations and your words from scripture, assuring us,”God will never leave us nor forsake us. Never will God our Father leave us fatherless, like an orphan.” are indeed a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path.
    Thank you once again for a beautiful, beautiful devotional with scriptural assurance.

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