KEEP BEING A BLESSING! Joshua chapter 8.
In chapter 7, Joshua and his people were defeated by the people of Ai because of the sin that was amongst the Israelites. But as we have read they had repented of their sins. So in chapter 8, Joshua still has that fear and discouragement of having to face the people of Ai again. So God shows his mercy and Grace. Despite the fact that they had messed up God commands them to not be afraid or discouraged but is ready to use them again as if nothing ever happened. And use them mightily. They were able to go out against the enemy and defeat them. What's fascinating after they defeated the enemy was they build an altar before the Lord and wrote down the laws of Moses as given by God, and read them to all the people of Israel. Joshua and the people took the time to focus on the Lord and give him glory and honor and thanking him for all he had accomplished through the Israelites. They spent the time before God rather than going back to the camp gloating about their victory because they knew without God they could do nothing.
God, I mess up all the time. Forgive me and use Me For Your Glory. I look at the ministry before me and it looks huge and overwhelming at times. I easily become discouraged. I wonder how I'll ever get things done. But show mercy and Grace and use me and bring others beside me to accomplish what needs to be accomplished. Lord, we will give you all the glory and praise. I will stop what I'm doing and focus on you with Thanksgiving and praise. Amen!
When God works in our lives through answered prayer or through miracles, do we continue on with our life as if it was no big deal or do we stop what we're doing and spend time before the Lord thanking him and giving him praise and glory?
Once Achan’s sin was dealt with in Joshua 7, God gives victory over Ai in chapter 8. Joshua follows the Lord’s instructions and it makes all the difference. God always knows the big picture and He does what is right in every situation. When we try to do things on our own that may even be things that look easy, the results may turn out to be disastrous, but I don’t think that we could ever truly fail when we seek the Lord and follow Him with all our heart. Joshua stopped to recognize the Lord and honor Him. May we remember to do the same in our lives.
I was encouraged today from reading Psalm 37:27-34 and I hope that you are too.
“Turn away from evil and do good; so shall you dwell forever.
For the Lord loves justice; He will not forsake His saints.
They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever.
The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice.
The law of his God is in his heart; his steps do not slip.
The wicked watches for the righteous and seeks to put him to death.
The Lord will not abandon him to his power or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.
Wait for the Lord and keep His way, and He will exalt you to inherit the land; you will look on when the wicked are cut off.”
There’s a powerful lesson in today’s reading. When we fail, we need to …
• Confess our sins when God reveals them to us.
• Refocus on God, deal with the problem and move on.
I believe that God wants the cycle of sin, repentance and forgiveness to strengthen us, not weaken us. The lessons we learn from our failure should make us better able to handle the same situation the second time around. Because God is eager to give us cleansing, forgiveness and strength, the only way to lose is to give up!
Don’t listen to the devil and beat yourself up over failures. Confess, refocus and move on. Paul is an awesome example of this. He was able to accomplish all he did by forgetting what was behind him and focusing on the Lord. Remember, he had persecuted and killed Christians in his past. “Forgetting the things which lie behind, I press toward the mark of the prize of the high calling of God in Jesus Christ“ (Phil 3:13,14).
Lord, thank you for the lessons in Your Word. Guide me in what You want to do today with Your servant.
Great Psalm Jim and Jeanine I never looked at the cycle of sin like that before, but you make such a good point about how God can even use our sin, after we repent, to strengthen us! So as we go about our days and we focus on our specific struggles, we can be conscious that the struggle is making us stronger. Letting go of the sin that is binding us, will lead us to the life God is calling us to live. BUT in those moments where sin wins, we aren’t to get discouraged, or give up. We are to repent and grow stronger with God.
This chapter shows just that! God uses His people, even after they have sinned and He continues on with His promise to them. He wants to do the same for us!