“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Psa. 23:66Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. (Psalm 23:6)). “Goodness and mercy shall follow” us always because the Lord Himself is with us, and He tells us to “let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” Many of us are creatures of moods. Sometimes we feel like the Lord is near; at other times we feel that He is far off. But our feelings have nothing to do with the facts of God’s Word. “The Lord, He it is that doth go before thee; He will be with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.” These are the words of Him who is called “Faithful and True,” for “God, that cannot lie,” has vouchsafed His presence always with His own. “Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” To be sure, there are times when we are more than ordinarily conscious of His presence, but that does not make His abiding presence any more certain. It depends, not upon our consciousness of it, but upon His own Word. “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” (Josh. 1:99Have 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. (Joshua 1:9)). “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God” (Isa. 41:1010Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. (Isaiah 41:10)).
Our Lord never leaves His own,
He stands close by them, always;
Though burdens press, and trials
come,
He is with us all our days.
J. M. Marchbanks,
from Comfort of the Scriptures