Living life guided by God’s word

Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid or discouraged. Take all your fighting men and attack Ai, for I have given you the king of Ai, his people, his town, and his land. You will destroy them as you destroyed Jericho and its king. But this time you may keep the plunder and the livestock for yourselves. Set an ambush behind the town.” So Joshua and all the fighting men set out to attack Ai. Joshua chose 30,000 of his best warriors and sent them out at night with these orders: “Hide in ambush close behind the town and be ready for action. Joshua 8:1-4 NLT

Now that sin had been dealt with, the Israelites can now march to victory. There are those that resist discipline because of the price of pain and disruption it causes, but taking no action dealing with sin results to bitterness, distress, and defeat. From the text, Joshua received words of encouragement from God, “Do not be afraid or discouraged.” They have been restored by God and now they know that they cannot proceed without Him leading them. Let us not allow defeat to ruin our lives. When we receive God’s forgiveness and we know that we have been restored, He will not cast us aside. After God’s restoration of Israel, He now provided them the plan to take. God in His instructions to us through His word, He provides us His plan so we can attain victory. Joshua learned his lesson of listening to the words of a few spies in their first attempt to attack Ai. This time, it is unwise if he will not involve the whole army and with the leading of God. We cannot just run ahead with our plans and ignore God’s word. Such action will be to our detriment and could hurt others. The promises of God will make a difference when claimed by faith. We cannot be presumptive and lay out a plan for ourselves without first finding God’s will found in His word. This is why it is important that a child of God, a faithful follower of Jesus should spend time regularly in the Word of God. We cannot go into the battle unarmed and unprepared. “Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:17). Despite the fact that God has provided us his promises, we have to act upon them and engaged ourselves in the battle. It is our faith and hope in God that will inspire us to act and to live victoriously. “Be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless” (1 Corinthians 15:58).

Blessings,