‘And I have been with you wherever you went. . . .’ 2 Sam. 7.9 esv
You’ll want to see the context of this verse, but what a wonderful comment for God to make to His servant King David 3000 years ago:
‘But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, “Go and tell my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord: . . .thus you shall say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel. And I have been with you wherever you went. . . ‘
We who know the Lord as Savior can say the same thing. ‘I will never leave thee nor forsake thee’ is His promise in the Old Testament as well as the New. “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” He makes His abode with us and lives within: ‘ I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. . . ‘ Gal. 2.20. I’ve been aware of God’s Presence in my life the entire 80 years of my journey.
My wife said the same thing, ‘I can never remember not being sure that God loved me. I trusted Jesus as my savior at a very young age. Being in church and worshiping God has always been a vital part of my life. The Bible says that man cannot live by bread alone but by every word from God. The Bible is where we go to meet with God and to get to know Jesus more and more. . . .’ Journal, p. 187
‘I have been with you wherever you went. . . ‘ That doesn’t mean He approves of everything we do or think! The context continues, ‘ I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, . . . but my steadfast love [my mercy] will not depart from him. . . .’
I wonder if people who trust in themselves rather than in God realize what a weak reed their hope is in. The problem is not that we feel inadequate and just need to psych ourselves into self-confidence; the problem is that we are inadequate and most things in life are beyond our control. But God is sufficient and we can rest in Him and trust in Him. “Blessed is the person who makes the Lord His trust.” ‘But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.’ 2 Cor. 4.7
This passage also speaks of the completion of our journey in a different way: “When your days are fulfilled. . . .’7.12 We’ll all be here until our ‘days are fulfilled.’ For some it takes longer than for others. All of that is in God’s sovereign control: ‘All the days ordained for me were written in you book before one of them came to be.’ Ps.139.16 niv
The Bible consistently measures our time in days: when your days are fulfilled . . . the days ordained for me. . . So let’s live that way! One day at a time. Focus your attention on what God wants you to do this day and rejoice and be glad in it for God created each day and has given us enough time to accomplish whatever He wants us to that day. It won’t be as much as you want to accomplish, but it’s enough. Be satisfied with the time God gives you and don’t complain about unexpected ‘interruptions.’ All of that is in God’s providential control. Accept it as from Him.
And at the end of the day, thank God for what He accomplished and enabled you to do during that day. Be thankful unto Him and bless His Name for the Lord is good, His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures through all generations. And a prayer of thanksgiving at the end of the day: ‘The day thou gavest, Lord, is ended. The darkness falls at thy behest; To thee our morning hymns ascended, Thy praise shall hallow now our rest.’ (hymn, 1870)
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