Joshua 1:1-2(NLT) states, “After the death of Moses the LORD’s servant, the LORD spoke to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant. He said, “Moses my servant is dead. Therefore, the time has come for you to lead these people, the Israelites, across the Jordan River into the land I am giving them. I promise you what I promised Moses: ‘Wherever you set foot, you will be on land I have given you—” This is significant because Moses was a great servant of God and leader of God’s people. They had been enslaved by the Egyptians, and they were horribly treated by Egyptian slave-masters. No matter how rich, famous, or old a person is, they will always and forever need to be led by a leader of higher authority. From the very beginning, God has shown us this. We were created to be God’s children, and we were created to be led by Him through our entire lives. To a certain degree, God’s people understood this, so when Moses died, they were poised to panic, but God had a plan. He always does!
Joshua, a man who demonstrated his faith in God, was chosen to be their new leader. Our Heavenly Father gave His people time to mourn the loss of Moses, but after thirty days, it was time to move! They had been camping in the wilderness for a long time after they left Egypt, but God had a plan, and they needed to be about the business of getting on with things. Heavenly Father promised to give His people land that was bountiful and beautiful, and this land had occupants that were already living there. Some of the inhabitants of this land were large and strong. The younger generation was under the leadership of Joshua, but their ancestors, the older folks that had been under Moses’ leadership, died in the wilderness. They were not permitted to enter the promised land because they refused to trust in the promise God had made them. They were afraid of the large and strong inhabitants of that land. Because of their fear, they wandered in circles in the wilderness until all the members of this fearful and older generation died out. This is what fear does to us. It causes us to miss the plan of God for our lives because we refuse to have faith in Him.
Our Heavenly Father never misses a beat. He is all-powerful, all-knowing, and everywhere present. In Jeremiah 29:11(NLT), He said, “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” God is the Giver of good and perfect gifts, and all His plans are good. We get ourselves into serious trouble when we veer away from this central truth. God knows the way that we are supposed to go. He has set a race to run before each of us, and we are to run it with His Will and Plan motivating and backing our every step. But most of us don’t appreciate our partnership with God. It is a partnership where He leads, and we follow. We encounter problems and blockers because we want to be the leader, and that’s not a workable strategy.
Jericho was part of the promised land, and Joshua had to lead the people to overtake it. Joshua 6:2(NLT) states, “But the LORD said to Joshua, “I have given you Jericho, its king, and all its strong warriors.” This is an extremely important truth for us to note. The Lord is the One giving promises, directives, and instructions, not Joshua. He trusted God and proved his obedience to the Lord. Joshua understood God’s power, and he did not try to get ahead of God. He knew that the only way to receive victory was to first hear the Word of the Lord, and then follow it.
The laws of faith and obedience have not changed. The faith and obedience to God that was required thousands of years ago in order to see victorious results is still required today. Often, we go off on our own tangents. We tell God about our desires and wants, and some of us pray fervently for them, but we refuse to humble ourselves. We refuse to wait on God’s directions and instructions. Some of us play a guessing game of “I think maybe I heard Him, so I’m going to act.” Isaiah 40:31(NKJV) declares, “But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” Our strength is renewed by waiting on God. And if at any point we are ambivalent or unsure as to whether we have heard His voice, He knows exactly how to confirm it to us. The patience to wait on His confirmation is paramount.
Again, He doesn’t miss a beat. When we ask God for directions, He’s going to give them to us, and will do so in His perfect timing. He is the One who knows where we’re supposed to be, when we’re supposed to be there, and He knows exactly how to get us there. James 1:5 says that if any of us lacks wisdom, we should ask God, because God gives wisdom liberally, and He will not be upset with us for asking Him for it. He desires to be involved in all our decisions and choices, no matter how small or great. But it is a big mistake to try to take matters into our own hands and move without God’s definitive greenlight and instructions.
God speaks to us all the time. Sometimes, He tells us to do things that may not be in line with the way we typically do operate. This is one of the reasons why we must stay close to Him, so that we will have developed the acumen of recognizing how and when He speaks. For instance, He told Joshua and the Israelites in Joshua 6:3 to march around the town of Jericho once a day for six days. Joshua did not question this but was confident he had heard from God and moved accordingly. Heavenly Father also instructed him to have seven priests walk ahead of the *Ark of the Covenant, each carrying a ram’s horn. On the seventh day, they’d need to march around the town seven times while the priest blew the horns. God instructed them in Joshua 6:5(NLT), “When you hear the priests give one long blast on the rams’ horns, have all the people shout as loud as they can. Then the walls of the town will collapse, and the people can charge straight into the town.”
We all have our own opinions and assumptions about how to live life, and these opinions and assumptions often lead us into very harmful and hurtful situations. God doesn’t want this for any of us. He wants to keep us safe, and He wants us to live the more than abundant life that His Son, Jesus Christ, made available. When the children of Israel followed the instructions that Joshua had received from God, they were victorious. It’s the same for us! Stick to God’s plan for your life. You won’t ever regret it, because it’s the absolute best thing that any living person can do. The strategy God has given us is to always seek Him first. When we do this and remain committed to do as He says, we can be confident we’re on the right track and that we are pleasing Him in all we do. ■
*Ark of the Covenant – Moses received instructions and the pattern from God to make The Ark of the Covenant. It contained the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments, Aaron’s rod, and a pot of manna that God had rained down from heaven to feed the Israelites in the wilderness. (Exodus 25, Hebrews 9:4)
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Stick to God’s Plan for Your Life”, written for 4theChristianMan.com© 2022. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.