Confidence, Courage, Encouragement, Fear, God's Promises, Our Identity, Prayer, Relationship to Christ, Sin, Struggles

Never Alone

I’m sure all of us at one time or another have felt lonely or at least alone.  Sometimes, it can seem as if we are the only person on the face of the planet.  We can be in a room full of people and still feel lonely.  God assures us that we are NOT alone!  Joshua 1:9 says, “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. (KJV)  There are many verses in the Bible where God reassures His people of His presence so you don’t have to feel alone..

In our Scripture today, Moses has just died, and God has put Joshua in charge of the people of Israel. God reassures Joshua to be strong, not to be afraid of the task in front of him, and to be courageous.  It must have been such a daunting task before Joshua.  The people were notorious for being stubborn and disobedient, and he was given the job of leading them into the Promised Land.  I wonder what he thought when God told him he was to be the one to lead them into the land God had promised them?  I know if it would have been me, I might have said, “You got to be kidding me, God!  You see how these people can be.  Thanks, but no thanks.”  At that point, Joshua must have felt alone with such a huge responsibility.  But God instructs him that He would be with Joshua always!  “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you.” (Joshua 1:5 ESV)  Joshua would be faced with all kinds of issues, rebellious people, sin in the camp, and enemies in the land they needed to defeat before they could take possession of it. He needed to be strong and courageous to take on such a monumental task, and to know that He wasn’t alone and that God would help him.

I know I’ve had times when I felt lonely and alone. But I have received great encouragement from Scripture.  My favorite book of the Bible is Hebrews. The writer reminds us that God has said, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” (Hebrews 13:5 KJV)  All through Scripture God reassures His people that He will always be with them.  Psalm 94:14 says, “For the Lord will not abandon His people, Nor will He forsake His inheritance.” (NASB 1995)  We are His inheritance!  That means we are precious to Him and He will take care of us!  He will walk with us every day of our lives. He won’t leave us to fight against Satan all on our own.  He will not leave us to sink or swim in the troubles we face.  He will help us in many ways.  He speaks to us through His Word, where we can gain encouragement.  Sometimes, He sends people into our lives who will come alongside us to help us, so that we know someone is in our corner praying for us to succeed.  His Holy Spirit is inside of us, helping us when we find it so hard to pray.  There are so many ways that He shows us that He is with us and that He cares for us.

He encourages us to come to Him with any problem we face.  “Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7 ESV) I love it when I can come to Him with any problem because I know I’m not trying to figure things out all by myself, I have Jesus to help me.  “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” (John 14:18 NASB 1995)  He promises to be our help!  How encouraging!  I know I will never be alone, ever!  I don’t have to be fearful of what lies ahead of me, He is preparing the way long before I get there.  I can be strong and courageous in tough times because I know He is walking right by my side. 

My friend, be encouraged!  During dark days, times of Spiritual warfare, and feeling lonely, know that God is right by your side!  You are not alone!  He loves you and wants only the best for you.

Published by

Donna Knuth Rice

I am trying a blog for the first time in my life, and frankly, I feel like I don't have a clue as to what I'm doing! But, here goes. I work at a Christian Television network in the Correspondence Department, where I write letters and emails to our viewers, pray with them for their needs, and send materials they request. I am a Christian. I was saved at the age of 11 during a youth meeting at my church. My pastor led me to the Lord, and to say the least, my life has been an adventure. I am a widow. My late husband, Allen, passed away after 34 1/2 years of marriage. He had been sick the last seven years of his life, and it was a struggle, for him and for me. We met as part of a singing group that was affiliated with a Christian Radio station, and we sang together all through our lives together. We both worked in television and radio all through our married life, mostly for Christian stations. Besides singing I also play flute. I had the luxury of having parents who started out as music teachers...so music was in our house constantly. Some people describe me as being a loud-mouthed lime type...can't disagree with that. I have a tendency to put my foot in my mouth more times than I can count! I also have a tendency to say exactly what's on my mind...which is why I get myself in so much trouble! LOL! Trust me, that's something me and God have been working on for a very long time. I have no children here on earth, although I have a baby in heaven. My baby here is my dog Jack. He's a black lab/ chow mix. He's a big boy....thinks he's a lap dog! Can't think of much else to say. The reason I started this blog is because a few months ago in church, a guest pastor came and delivered a message, and when he asked for those of us who wanted prayer to come forward, I did. When he came to me he asked me if I did any journaling. I told him no 'cause I wasn't very good at it. He told me to start, and prophesied over me that my journal thoughts would impact other people. I wasn't sure just how I was to go about doing this. In fact, I was a little hesitant at first. I started journaling at home, and our assistant pastor's wife asked me to submit something for our Senior newsletter. I didn't the first edition, but something I had heard on Christian radio a long time ago and has stuck with me all these years, came to mind so I submitted an article. That article will be my first post. I don't claim to have all the answers, and my thoughts may seem a little "out there", but I feel God has been prodding me to do this, and so here I am. I hope what I post will bring encouragement, and "Something to Think About".

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