It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.
– Deuteronomy 31:8
Oh, I love this verse, this promise from God to his people, especially the first part of it. It’s all awesome, but the very beginning of Deuteronomy 31:8, where we read, “It is the Lord who goes before you.” I want you to think about that.
Deuteronomy 31:8 invites us to rest in God’s faithfulness.
Whatever you’re walking through right now in your life, God has gone before you, meaning he knew this was coming. You didn’t know this was coming, but he knew this was coming. And not just knew, but he goes before you in the sense of preparing provision for you in this moment.
I just think about people I know and love who are walking through hard days, and I think about this verse, and I think, “Oh, praise God that he’s gone before them, that he has prepared in advance the mercy, the strength, the help they need.” And this is for you. The Lord goes before you. And think about the encouragement this brings as you look at the next day or week or month or year or however long into the future in your life, to know that there is nothing you will face, ever, that God has not gone before you in.
And then that leads to the rest of this verse, and he will be with you when you get there. He will not leave you. He will not forsake you. He’ll be right there with you in the middle of it. So don’t be afraid. Don’t be dismayed when you think about the present or what you’re walking through right now, because the Lord has gone before you. He’s with you right now, and he’s going to lead you through. And don’t be afraid or dismayed when you think about the future because he’s already gone before you in that too. And he will be with you when you get there, and he will provide everything you need. He’s gone before you. He is with you. And he will lead you through.
Deuteronomy 31:8 reminds us that God is with us in every challenge.
O, God, we praise you for this promise that you gave to your people in Deuteronomy 31:8. We praise you as the one who goes before your people in whatever they may face. And we praise you for that reality in each of our lives as your people. We praise you, that whatever we might be walking through right now, you have gone before us. You knew this was coming, and you have prepared what Psalm 23 says is a feast for us of mercy for us to have in hard days and difficult days and challenging days. God, you’ve gone before us. You’re with us when we get there, and you will lead us through them. All glory be to your name.
I just pray this reality over anyone who is walking through hard days, God, that they would know you’ve gone before them, that you are with them, and you will lead them through. God, I pray that you would deliver each of us from all fear, from all fear of anything, and specifically fear of the future because we know you go before us into the future.
God, we praise you for freedom from fear. Help us to live in it, and God help us to spread this. God, help us to encourage others who are walking through hard days around us.
Prayer for the Kalal People
And God, we pray you help us to spread this around the world. We pray, God, for the Kalal people of South Asia, India, other countries, God. We pray for 3 million Kalal people who live in fear of, “What happens when I don’t worship this God or that God? Or how do I do this or that? And what does the future look like when it comes to reincarnation?” Oh God, we pray for freedom from all fear over the Kalal people, through Jesus, through the gospel. God, we pray that the gospel would spread to the Kalal people, that you would send out laborers to spread the gospel to them, and that they would receive it and experience freedom from fear.
And God, I pray, we pray together for all those who are working to spread the gospel among the Kalal or other unreached people, that as they face challenges in particular, they would know that you have gone before them and you are with them; that you will not leave them or forsake them, that they would not be afraid or dismayed. O, God, we pray all of this according to your Word, which we love in Deuteronomy 31:8. In Jesus’ name, amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder of Radical, an organization that makes Jesus known among the nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Don’t Hold Back, and How to Read the Bible.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
