The Lord Will Walk With You
When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
(Isaiah 43: 02, NIV)
Walking down life's highway, we fear loneliness. We look at ourselves, we look at the journey, we try to calculate the distance, think about the hard times ahead, worry about what we have with ourselves and, being clueless about what is beyond the peak of the road, we become anxious and disturbed. But seldom do we remember that we have our Lord our Father, who walks with us. We are not alone. We have our Lord who is ready to take every step with us.
Isaiah 43: 02 reminds us that whatever the situation we are going through, how hard and long the walk is, the Lord will be with us throughout and will help and safeguard us. Even though the promises look similar and combined together as they promise the Lord's assured presence in our lives, I find three kinds of assurances hidden like three pearls within the same shell. I would like to share them, one by one, as I believe the details will help us realise what a mighty and caring God we serve.
The Lord promises to be with us in difficult and challenging times.
Carefully reading through the first part of Isaiah 43: 02, we find that the Lord promises His presence with us. The Lord says, "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you." A huge "amen" to that! The Lord did not say that there won't be any waters on your way, but He has promised His mighty presence when we pass through those waters. It is so true that we cannot avoid or run away from the challenges of life, we have to face them. We have to be prepared to walk through them. But all that we need to remember is that the Lord is with us, and He is going to walk with us as we continue our walk of life through every difficult and challenging phase. And that is a great assurance more than enough to walk without fear. Come what may, the Lord is with us. His walk continues beyond life and into eternity.
The Lord promises not to allow any situation to suddenly affect us very strongly.
The second part of Isaiah 43: 02 says, "when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you." What an amazing promise we find here. When we find a hard time nearing us in life, or when we go through a difficult time, one of our greatest worries is how this sudden situation is going to affect us so strongly that we become weak and hurt, and not able to progress further in life. We fear whether this situation will mute us, disable us and even bring us to a halt. We fear that we will never be able to move on. We worry that we will just exist and rust till the end. But let us look at what the Lord is promising today for us in this verse. The Lord promises that the difficult moments and pressures will never "sweep over you." And, yes! The Lord promises not to allow any situation in our life to suddenly affect us strongly and bring us to a halt. He will walk with us, hold our hands strongly, and will help us overcome.
The Lord promises not to allow any situation to destroy us.
The third part of Isaiah 43: 02 reminds us of another great promise in the Lord, where the Lord says "When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze." Sometimes we fear that the upcoming difficulty or sudden hard situation that has fallen on us is going to be the last and we are definitely destroyed by this. We fear that this will be the end. But the Lord promises not to allow any situation or a hard time or even disaster in your life to destroy you and set you ablaze. Let us remember that the end of this world or the end of life in this world is not an end to a believer in Christ Jesus. Not even death can destroy us! For the Lord has promised eternity and we will always live with Him in eternity. Nothing can destroy us or stop our precious walk with the Lord. It continues forever and ever.
Come what may, we have the Lord with us! One day at a time, every step, trusting in the Lord and moving on.
Let us continue to trust the Lord and remember His mighty and caring presence that moves with us as keep every step of our journey. May the blessings of God the Father, the love and grace of Christ Jesus the Son, and the fellowship and guidance of the Holy Spirit, be with us, as we continue to walk through waters, cross rivers and stand in the midst of fires.
May God bless you.
Yours in Christ,
"One Day at a Time 🎶"
by Lynda Randle
