Joshua’s Decisiveness

You know, I wonder what Joshua thought when the Lord instructed him to march around the city of Jericho for seven days, seven times on the seventh day, then shout and the wall of Jericho would fall flat.  Of course, the Bible doesn’t say anything and I’m sure Joshua trusted the Lord so much that a doubt never crossed his mind.  But do we, modern-day saints of God, have that same blind faith?

And what about Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria in II Kings Ch 5?  He had leprosy.  He sent a servant to inquire of Elisha, the prophet of God, for him to be healed.  Well Elisha instructed him to go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.  Well, Naaman was wroth because he didn’t see how washing in a river would do anything – he expected some magical thing to happen. But his servant said to him, ” My father, [if] the prophet had bid thee [do some] great thing, wouldest thou not have done [it]? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash and be clean?”  So Naaman went and washed in the Jordan river and was healed.

Sometimes the Lord asks us to have complete trust in Him no matter how odd the request or how we see the situation.  Lord, help me to obey and not to lean on my own understanding!

Lord bless you,

Sister Kristin Howell – Apostolic Singles Network

Joshua’s Decisiveness — Joshua 1:1-9

*Courtesy of “In Touch Ministries”

From time to time, everyone faces a big decision of some kind. As believers, we should face such crossroads with the desire to follow the Lord’s will. The Hebrew leader Joshua gives us an example to follow.  God gave Joshua clear directives, which, from a human standpoint, didn’t make much sense: He told the leader to march his men around the city for seven days. Many of us might have questioned such a battle plan.  Yet Joshua was fully committed to obeying, and he refused to reconsider that decision, even after (quite literally) receiving marching orders (Joshua 3:3-5). He followed directions exactly, and God gave the Israelites victory through his obedience.

Sadly, many saints are less determined to obey. Even when the Lord’s instructions seem perfectly sensible, internal pressure can still make us second-guess what we should do. Sometimes, we don’t trust God enough to take a big step of faith. Or we may question whether we heard Him correctly. Another possibility is fear of failure. But we should realize this: When we seek God’s will, walk in His way, and obey what we believe He is saying, He graciously works–even through our missteps–for our good (Romans 8:28).

External pressure can also veer us away from God’s best. When we choose to obey Him, we may face persecution and criticism. However, we must seek to please God, even if that means displeasing others.

What decisions are you facing? Pray for wisdom and direction, confess any disobedience, and be ready to obey.