DEVOTION – DAY 451

Deuteronomy 31:8 “The Lord Is With You”

Deuteronomy 31:8 “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.”

The above words of encouragement were given by Moses to Joshua, his successor. Moses had urged Joshua to be strong and courageous as he led the Israelites into the land that God had promised to give them. In the above verse, Moses assured Joshua that God would be leading the way ahead and that God would be with Joshua. There was no need to be fearful or discouraged. Both men knew that there would be great obstacles ahead as the Israelites occupy the Promised Land. But the promise of God’s faithfulness and help was intended to assure the people that they would succeed despite the many obstacles. 

Nine years ago, Pastor John met up with me and Deacon Wai Meng. Pastor John wanted us to implement Boys Brigade (BB) in Desa ParkCity and in KLBC Homeschool respectively. After a short discussion, we told him we would look into the matter. I had never been in BB and had no idea how to get a BB company started. Neither had Deacon Wai Meng. We prayed, and I drew assurance from the above verse that the Lord would go before us. We will do what we can and the Lord will do the rest. Deacon Wai Meng knew someone who was active in BB and he got us invited to visit the BB company in Brickfields to see how the company was run. The officers there were helpful and gave us information as to how to get started.

I prayed for the Lord to lead me to potential leaders, people who had been to BB before and were now ready to be the core BB officers for 15th BB KL company. The Lord faithfully led me to a few members willing to get BB started. It may not be an ideal team, but they were committed and willing and the Lord would do the rest. With some training, the church launched the BB program and parents started to enroll their children. Word spread in the community and more children who were non-members also joined. The Lord is faithful and He always went before us. In April 2024, the 15th BB KL Company celebrated its 9th anniversary. Like Joshua, we knew there were obstacles. But we were not afraid and we forged ahead with the Lord leading the way. The Lord made everything possible. All glory goes to Him.

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, we worship you for you are faithful and caring. Thank you for promising never to leave us or forsake us. Please help us to be faithful to do our part for you, knowing that you will always do the rest. We humbly pray in the holy name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Questions

  1. What obstacles do you think you face in a work assignment, a project, or new business venture, or a new job? How do you feel?
  2. Will you set aside your fears and take courage and pray to the Lord for His direction for you? Will you ask Him to go ahead of you?
  3. Will you set out an action plan and faithfully do your part and trust God to do His part?
  4. How can you give God the glory even in matters like these? Discuss.