Joshua 1:1-9 - Joshua Installed as
Leader
After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord,
the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide:
“Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all
these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River
into the land I am about to give to them—to the
Israelites. I will give you every place where you
set your foot, as I promised Moses. Your territory
will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the
great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite
country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. No one
will be able to stand against you all the days of
your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with
you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. Be
strong and courageous, because you will lead these
people to inherit the land I swore to their
ancestors to give them.
“Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey
all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn
from it to the right or to the left, that you may be
successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the
Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and
night, so that you may be careful to do everything
written in it. Then you will be prosperous and
successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and
courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged,
for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you
go.”
Hello Friends!!! As I type this morning (on 5/14)
the rain is coming down and the sky is as dark as
night… quite the opposite from last week’s weather
report! How necessary it is to find blessings in a
variety of circumstances. It’s easy to Praise The
Lord when the sun is shining and the sky is blue and
the flowers are blooming and a refreshing breeze is
blowing. It becomes more difficult when our view of
how life ought to be doesn’t quite stack up when
compared to the reality! God’s love and grace is
found in the rain and in the storm clouds and in the
darkness too. He can be harder to find but He is
present. Do you remember the words to that classic
Hymn? “When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest
on his unchanging grace. In every high and stormy
gale, my anchor holds within the veil!” This present
crisis is no different. God is with us. He is
providing for us, but He is also giving us
opportunities to encourage, serve, and illuminate
this situation with Light of His Word… His Gospel.
Our current state affairs requires God’s people to
exhibit strength and courage! As we all know our
equilibrium has been upended in the last few months.
It takes strength and courage to cope and to find
new ways of functioning and new opportunities in
which to thrive. We can’t run away from this moment.
The good news is that we have no reason to for we
are people of hope grounded in our Almighty God. We
may be tempted to. I remember talking to one of the
most faithful caregivers I have ever had the
pleasure of working with at The Christian Village. A
daughter of one of our former residents. She was one
of the best! She told me one day that on a
particularly difficult day she thought about getting
in the car, going to the bank, withdrawing all her
savings, and she would just head west and see how
far she could get before all her money ran out. Do
you ever feel like running away? You are human! This
caregiver and daughter felt that way but kept
showing up day in and day out to take care of her
loved one. This is a time for strong and courageous
children of God! I have had the pleasure of knowing
many over the years and I am thankful that I know
many today!
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Strength and Courage can be our best
friends through illness or threat of illness,
through lost income, through not being able to see
and hold and hug our family members, and through the
uncertainty of tomorrow and next week and next month
and next year. We feel fear but we don’t let fear
control us. We keep moving forward. We keep
fighting. We do not wave the white flag of
surrender. We have a family and a community that
needs us and so we press on.
God also pointed Joshua to the Law of
Moses as a source of strength and courage. The Ten
Commandments and the expounding of those
commandments as taught in Exodus, Leviticus,
Numbers, and Deuteronomy provided healthy boundaries
based on timeless truths and divine principles which
ably guided the Israelites during times of change
and trial. During “normal” seasons of life, as well
as “dynamic” seasons of life, we need something to
hold on to that give us stability and informs us of
our purpose, our identity, and what is expected of
us. The Israelites needed these boundaries and felt
security in them. We are no different. We find
safety and security and confidence in Truth… in
Purpose… in Direction… in Identity. If there is no
one in our lives to teach us these timeless truths
we will look for them ourselves and/or manufacture
something that we can live with. Guiding principles
lead us toward a life of integrity… without
integrity we fall… “a house divided against itself
cannot stand.” So yes, the Law of Moses… the Law of
God… the commandments to Love the Lord our God with
all of our Whole Selves, and the commandment to love
our neighbor as ourselves, mold who we are and give
us the direction we need to know who we are, who we
belong to, and what our mission is. God’s Revelation
to Man… His Truth as revealed in Holy Scripture…
gives us Strength and Courage through the good
times, the bad times, and everything in between.
Will we always be faithful in our thoughts and in
our actions to the letter, or more importantly, to
the spirit of The Law? No. Do we have a Savior who
brings redemption, grace, and lovingly molds us into
a vessel that He can use? Yes! I feel my strength
and courage growing! How about you? Do you hear His
voice? “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for
the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
- Thanks Be to God…Amen!
Chaplan Ryan
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