Have you ever had someone tell you, “You’ve got to be strong on this one,”? “It’s going to take courage to handle this problem,”? Whether it’s a big problem or a little one, a little courage along the way always helps. The Bible speaks of a man who received this very word of confidence before he set out on his assignment. In fact, he was told this very thing three times within the first nine verses of the book that has his name. His name was Joshua and he was about to lead the children of Israel across the Jordan River to conquer the kingdoms of the Promised Land that Moses had been leading them to do.
Joshua was Moses’ righthand- man when it came to leading an army into battle. The children of Israel had not yet experienced battle, but they were about to, in order to conquer the people of Canaan so they could go in and possess the land God was giving them. In these first nine verses of the book of Joshua, God told him, “Now that my servant Moses is dead, you must lead my people across the Jordan River into the land I am giving them. Only be strong and very courageous, for no one will be able to stand against you as long as you live, for I will be with you as I was with Moses.” Then two more times He told Joshua, “Be strong and very courageous, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go!”
You see, they were about to do warfare as no man had ever done it before. They were about to destroy the city walls that surrounded the city of Jericho in a manner that had never been done, and to my knowledge, has never been repeated! They were about to knock down the strong walls of Jericho with the blast of the horns and the shout of their voices! For seven days Joshua was to lead his army around the city of Jericho once a day, and then on the seventh day, they were to march around seven times, and on the seventh time, the priests were to give one long blast of their horns and at Joshua’s command the entire army was to shout! And the walls of Jericho came tumbling down so the army of Israel could go in and destroy their enemy. Have you ever heard anything like that before?
Years ago I worked as a night watchman for a company in Austin, Texas, and one of the places I kept watch over was an out-door shopping center. There were several stores that I drove around or entered into to see that all was well. The good thing about it was that there were two restaurants, one was a bar, but both places offered me free drinks and free food! Not a bad “perk” for being a night watchman! However, one night, I noticed that the back door in the alley way of a Clothes Cleaners was cracked open. I knew that the owners had already left, but I also know that they didn’t mean to leave the door ajar, even a crack. I also knew that there was probably an alarm system that would sound off and alert the Austin police in case someone walked in after hours. I was a little timid and made sure no one was there, but I had to do it. I had to walk in and set off the alarm. Folks, in the town that I live in, I hear train whistles, police and fire engine sirens, and ambulance sirens going off all the time. But the sound that I heard that night, which was right over my head after I walked in, literally, and I am not kidding, literally knocked me off my feet! Seriously! I had never felt a blast like that before, much less heard such a blast as I did when that alarm went off! I didn’t know how to turn off the alarm, but I did know how to get out the back door after making sure that no one was in there that shouldn’t have been. It wasn’t but a few minutes when the police and the owners of the store arrived. After giving my identity to the police and seeing the owners, whom I had already gotten acquainted with, saw what was happening, they were glad that it was me and no one else that had set off the alarm. The owners rewarded me with a canvas chair they were going to throw away anyway, as well as with a hardy “Thank you for watching over our shop.” For that very reason, I was rewarded by the restaurants with free food and drinks. They appreciated having me around.
Timid? You bet! But I knew that I had to open that door and go in to make sure that no one was there that shouldn’t have been. Listen. Sometimes your trials may seem difficult and hard, and you want to avoid them as much as possible. But sometimes you don’t have any other choice. You must forge on if you are to get the victory! The Lord’s word to you, as it was to Joshua is, “Be strong and courageous. For as I was with Joshua, I will be with you.” What better encouragement can you have than that?
