Taking A Moment to Be Still

Wholeheartedly. This word has cropped up more than once in our Old Testament reading. I believe I’ve even written about it’s significant before. As Christians, we are called to follow God in such a way. Not half-headedly, not reluctantly, but wholeheartedly, with our whole being. In Joshua 13-15 we see the land beginning to be divided among the Israelites. Their inheritance was finally being realized. In these chapters of lists, once verse stood out in particular, the verse in which Caleb is honored for his devotion to God. Caleb had just asked Joshua for the land of Hebron, and it had been given to him. The next verse says, “So Hebron has belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite ever since, because he followed the LORD, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly” (Joshua 14:14b). What an admirable thing to say about a man late in his life. This portion of scripture tells us that Caleb was 85 years old (vs.10). He’d liven most of his life waiting for the promise land to come to fruition. At the age of 40 he scoped the land out, and then lived all those years since battling the local peoples of the lands. Finally, before his death, he’s given the land of Hebron for his family, and it’s noted that he was a man who loved the Lord with all of his heart.

I wonder if God would say the same thing about me at the end of my life. Will He say that I loved Him whole-heartedly, or any when I slowed down enough to think about Him? I’ll admit it, I’m much more a Martha then a Mary. In today’s reading in Luke 10: 25-42, I was once again reminded about how similar I am to the busy sister. I don’t really know how not to be busy. I think it’s ingrained in me. But just the same, if I’m to live my life whole-heartedly for Christ, I know that I need to slow down so that I can actually hear his voice. Here’s what Jesus said in Luke 10:41-42, “‘Martha, Martha,’ the Lord answered, ‘you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.’” What was that one thing? I think it was taking the time to sit at the feet of Jesus. It was taking the time to worship and adore the Savior that I’m so thankful for. It was stopping and being still, even for just a few minutes, in order to hear his voice. A verse I’ve clung onto for years is Psalm 46:10, which says, “Be still and know that I am God.” Being still is so tremendously hard for me, but it’s something I strive for just the same. For I do love Him wholeheartedly and want that to be evident in my life.

What about you? In the craziness of life, do you ever take the time to be still and truly worship the Lord? Do you love Him wholeheartedly?

Lord, thank you for your great love for me. Help me to dwell in your presence today and everyday. I love you Lord with everything that I am.

The Day the Sun Stood Still

“On the day the LORD gave the Amorites over to Israel, Joshua said to the LORD in the presence of Israel:
‘O sun, stand still over Gibeon,
O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.’
So the sun stood still,
and the moon stopped,
till the nation avenged itself on [b] its enemies,
as it is written in the Book of Jashar.
The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the LORD listened to a man. Surely the LORD was fighting for Israel!” (Joshua 10: 12-14 NIV)


Hello everyone. I’ve been loving this journey through the Bible. Yes, I haven’t been perfect in doing it everyday of the week, but I’ve decided that it’s okay to be less than perfect. Instead, I’m enjoying each day of reading as I get to it. Today’s scripture selections were from Joshua 10-12 and Luke 10:1-24. In the book of Joshua we read of the spectacular day when the sun stood still. What a sight that would have been! Joshua 10:14 tells us that the sun stopped in the sky for an entire day. An entire day! Why? Because Joshua asked God for the favor. He truly believed that God would provide for the Israelites in this way. Because the sun stood still, they were able to defeat their enemies all the quicker.
The sun standing still goes beyond all scientific reason. No one here on this earth has the power to do such a thing. It’s far beyond any scientific tool or reasoning. Yet it happened. To me, it’s just one more way to see the true power and majesty of our God. I’m reminded of that song that goes “He’s Got the Whole World In His Hands.” He truly does. He can tell the sun to stand still if he wants it too. He can tell the clouds to rain, the sun to shine, or a rainbow to appear. He’s creator of all, nothing is out of his power. He can bring both good and bad into each of our lives, it’s his prerogative. I know, that’s an awful hard thing to understand. But it’s true just the same. God is God. We serve the same God today who made the sun stand still for Joshua several thousand years ago. All he asks is that we trust and believe. Trust that He is God and that he does know best. And believe that He will provide, whatever it takes. If it means moving a mountain or making the sun stand still, then he will. Nothing is impossible with God (Luke 18: 27).

God Uses Our Weaknesses

In today’s reading the Israelites were once again caught up in their human nature. They coveted and doubted, once again failing to trust in God. The disciples in Luke 9 weren’t much different. They doubted their ability to cast a demon out of a boy, and argued about who would be the greatest among them in the kingdom of heaven. In both Joshua 7-9 and Luke 9:37-62, we once again see human nature at it’s worst, and most real. Because haven’t we, too, had moments of doubts? Haven’t we, too, had moments in which we failed to trust God, and instead turned and high-tailed-it out of a scary situation? What I love is that God uses us, even in our moments of weakness.
In Joshua 8 we read about the taking of the city of Ai. Here’s the verse in particular that stuck out to me:
“The men of Ai looked back and saw the smoke of the city rising against the sky, but they had no chance to escape in any direction, for the Israelites who had been fleeing toward the desert had turned back against their pursuers” (Joshua 8:20 NIV).
While their fellow soldiers were burning the city, some of the Israelites had run for the desert. Their fear had overtaken any faith that God would provide. But then, God used them. As they turned around and realized that the battle had turned, they were able to capture the fleeing men of Ai. Their fear ended up being a strategic battle move. God used them, even in their moment of doubt, to be all the more victorious in the end.
Isn’t it amazing how God uses us, weaknesses and all? There have certainly been times when God has used my timidity and shyness to reach out to others with similar fears. He’s used me disappointments in writing and teaching to empathize with friends who were going through something similar. He’s used my very weaknesses to point most assuredly back to Him.
“For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10 NIV).

Has God ever used you at your weakest? What did it feel like? What did you learn from the experience?
Lord, please use my weaknesses today to make your name shine all the brighter.

And the Walls Came Crumbling Down

Hello everyone, I’m so happy it’s Friday! I’m also happy that I’m finally in the book of Joshua, which is such an interesting book. In today’s reading from Joshua 4-6, we see God once more part the waters for the Israelites and then crumble the walls of Jericho to the ground. What spectacular a spectacular thing for them to see! And for once, what faith on the Israelites part. Could you imagine being there when God told the Israelites to march around a city for seven days. It much have seemed repetitive and silly, but they did it. For once, instead of grumbling and complaining, they actually had faith that the Lord really would bring Jericho down on the seventh day. It’s such a spectacular story of God’s provision, and of the faith we, as Christians need to have. Sometimes in this life God tells us to do things that don’t make much sense. He tells us to do things when we can’t see the outcome. But he honors our faith and persistence just the same. Have you ever been there? I know I have. At times I’ve had to march around the proverbial Jericho, trusting that God would provide at the end of the day and tear those walls down. At times this was the restoration of a relationship I was waiting for, or a job I needed to pay the bills. I had to walk in faith, and God said he would provide in the end. And he did! He always provided in one way or another.
The second part of the reading, from Luke 9:18-36 reminds me exactly why I do believe God will provide. In today’s reading we see Peter proclaiming that Jesus is Lord, and we see Jesus himself transfigured in all his glory, what a spectacular sight that would have been! Reading it once again reminds me that Jesus was more than just a good teacher or a prophet, he was Lord, all-powerful, all mighty and all knowing. He’s a spectacular God. And so, I can’t help but believe as I walk around my Jericho’s that he will provide. He has the ability to. Nothing is past his working hand. And so, for today, I keep on marching in faith.

A Simpler Kind of Faith

There were some very interesting lessons of faith in todays readings from Joshua 1-3 & Luke 9:1-17. In Joshua, we meet the prostitute Rahab, who risks her own life to save some Israelite spies. Why does she do this? Because, despite her sinful past, she truly believed that “the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below” (Joshua 2: 11b NIV). This foreign woman believed that the Isrealite God was the one true God. And so she risked her life for some strangers. Her reward? Matthew 1:5 lists this prostitute in the genealogy of Jesus. What an honor! The lesson? It doesn’t matter where you’re from or what you’ve done, all God asks is that we believe. Rahab believed she would be saved if she put the scarlet rope out her window, we’ll found out the results of her faith in future readings.
In Luke 9 we see another story of faith. Jesus commissions his disciples to heal the sick and drive out the demons. And so they go and do just that. They believed in the seemingly impossible, and so God gave them the power to do so. What’s interesting about the disciple’s story is that, after coming back to Jesus and telling him about all the people they’ve just helped cure, their faith quickly falters. They look around at the hungry crowds and don’t see any way to feed them. They don’t have enough faith to multiply the loaves and the bread (Luke 9:15). After performing such miraculous wonders, they quickly fall short in the faith department.
Isn’t that so true of us as Christians? We’ll be doing so well, and then all of a sudden we’ll start to doubt. We’ll look at our own inabilities and wonder how it could ever happen. The problem is that we’ve once again turned inward, instead of focusing on our God who can and will do the impossible.
I think sometimes we need a simpler faith like that of Rahab, one that doesn’t over-complicate things, but instead just believes. Believes that God is God and that he will provide in any and every situation.
What do you think? Do you need to have faith in any area of your life today?