by Kelly Dixon
Reading: Joshua 6
“Done.” Joshua said to himself. He had delivered the instructions from the Lord to the Israelites. Murmuring was going on all around him, “Moses would have never had us doing this, Joshua is out of his mind.” In Joshua's mind there was no doubt, the Lord told him to do it and as Moses' successor in leadership, he was going to obey the Lord. The ones he was leading were in doubt, but he wasn't. The Lord gave specific instructions and they must be obeyed. “Lord, give me strength to lead in this obedience,” Joshua prayed to himself as he assisted by giving further instructions on how to assemble the priests as the Lord had instructed. As they began the march around the wall, Joshua was happy the people had to be quiet as the Lord commanded. Even though their murmuring wasn't going to sway him, he was glad he didn't have to hear it anymore. He knew that the marching around the city sounded ridiculous, but the Lord had commanded it. He wasn't going to allow the people to sway him like they did Moses years ago. If they were obedient to the Lord's commands and had faith in Him, the wall would come tumbling down.When I read the story of Joshua and the wall of Jericho, I relate to Joshua the most. Mainly I think it is because the Lord has put me in leadership positions for His people on many occasions, but also I feel it is because I know that I must stay tuned in and pull from His strength to fill that leadership position. My children love the game “Simon Says.” They really listen intently for the words “Simon Says” before the command so they will be assured that the act they are to do is to be done. If Simon didn't say to do it, then it wasn't to be done. If you do so, then you are dismissed from the game. They get frustrated when they are dismissed. Sometimes dismissal comes about because they get the giggles from what they were doing at the moment and their focus is taken off of the leader 's words. Other times, they get dismissed because they start to predict what the leader was going to say for them to do next and they stopped listening for “Simon Says.” It makes me think about our obedience to the Lord. As we begin to seek God's guidance in our life, we must focus on His Word. It is impossible for us to be obedient to the Lord if we don't know what he is commanding. In the game Simon Says, you focus on hearing the words “Simon says” before each command. In our obedience to God, we must focus on the Lord and His Word to find out what He is requiring of us.
The struggle comes in performing the acts of obedience especially when those acts just don't make sense to us. Just as Joshua was with the Israelites walking around the wall, we too must be obedient to the commands of the Lord. Even though it doesn't make sense, do it anyway because the Lord commanded. When He commands He does so for a reason and with a promise. God had a reason for the Israelites to march around the city walls for seven days and to do so in a particular manner. The reason I see right off is for them to be obedient to Him. In addition, His promise stated to Joshua was that the walls would collapse and they would be given the town of Jericho. However, if you read over this Scripture you will see that Joshua didn't share the promise of the Lord giving the town to them until the very end. I feel this took dedication from Joshua and great faith in His Lord. It would have been easier on him to say to the people, “If we do this marching for seven days then the Lord will collapse the town wall and we will take the town.” Instead, Joshua just gave the command to march around the wall. The faith through obedience was within Joshua as he was the one who knew the promise and he was the one acting in great strides of obedience. Obedience that knew God would keep His Word and fulfill His promise.
Has the Lord asked you to obey a command from Him that just doesn't make sense? Are you hesitant because you are not sure why? You can always be assured that God has a reason for His commands – no matter how ridiculous they sound to us. And His commands always come with a promise. Sometimes the promise is a personal one, just for us, as it was with Joshua and the Israelites. However, sometimes it is the promise that we don't have to worry because He will be there with us every step of the way. Just like in the game Simon Says, you must focus on the Lord and actively seek His commands only. We must not get caught up in our own judgment of the acts instead we must walk by faith and obey. It is when we walk by faith in obedience that we accomplish what the Lord wants in our lives and draw closer to Him.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, Your Word tells us that Your foolishness is wiser than our wisdom and Your weakness is stronger than our strength. (1 Corinthians 1:24-25) Help me to remember this when You command me to do something that I think doesn't make sense. You are in control – not me. Help me to focus on Your Word, Your guidance and Your promises. It is in Jesus Name I pray, Amen.
Deepening The Walk Mini Bible Study: This faith series is being accompanied with mini Bible studies for further in depth study. When Ladies for Jesus offers these type studies, we call them “Deepening The Walk.” It is our prayer that you use this extra material to assist you in deepening your walk with the Lord. Deepening The Walk Mini Bible Study page.
