Devo: What Lies Ahead

   January 3rd, 2015  

Devotional

“Be Courageous: What Lies Ahead” - Joshua 1: 1-11

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Monday: “Cross the Jordan” - Joshua 1: 1-2

One of the parts of the being the Church that I love the most, is that the work is never done. Think about it. There are always more people to introduce to Christ. More scriptures to dig deeply into. More people to serve as the hands and feet of Christ. But this can also be one of the most exhausting things about being the Church. The work is never done.

Dwell today on the words that God said to Joshua, “get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land that I am about to give you.” Not have already given you. The people of Israel had almost reached the promised land, but they are note quite there. They still have another boundary, the Jordan River to cross. 

We may look at churches around us that are worshipping more people or have more events and think those churches have made it, but all of us, the Church universal, haven’t arrived yet. We as individual local churches are called to work together to spread the good news of Jesus Christ. When we stop fulfilling the great commission to go and make disciples, we stop being the church. When we think we have made it, we have forgot the call of the church. Let us never forget. 

What are ways you feel called to make disciples of Jesus Christ? 

What work do you think our church is specifically called to do for the sake of the Kingdom of God? 

Prayer: God, thank you for calling us as the Church to be part of the never-ending task of thinking of new ways to reach new disciples. Use us, O God. Help us remember that the work is not done and send us forth for the sake of your name. Amen. 

Tuesday: “Where Your Foot Steps” - Joshua 1: 3-4, Matthew 9:37

I have shared in several places before that based off of the last set of national census data, there are more people in our community that do not yet have a relationship with Jesus Christ (or consider themselves to be “none” under the religious affiliation section of the census) then the national average. When I look at those numbers, I think about how they represent people I interact with at the post office, the grocery store, and walking down the street. When I think about that number, I think of Jesus’s words that the harvest is plenty, but the workers are few. 

God spoke to Joshua and told him that he would be given every piece of land that his foot stepped on. In some ways that promise is given to us today as well. We are placed in this community, at this time, for the sake of the Kingdom of God. Do we act like that? Do we recognize the people around us waiting to hear the good news? Do we live in such a way that reflects the importance of being the Church in the community for such a time as this?

What are three ways we can be worker for the harvest of God in this community at this time?

Prayer: God of promise, sometimes we act as if your promises are just for us. We fail to see how our presence in this community effects others and expands your Kingdom. O God, use us we pray, to reach out to our friends and neighbors. Let us be bold in serving others so that they can see you singing through us. Amen. 

Wednesday: “ No One Can Stand Against You” - Joshua 1: 5-6, Matthew 5:16

I was reading a book this week that had some interesting statistics. It claimed that nationally 43% of people don’t identify with any religion. We are often afraid to share our faith with these folks because we fear they will attack us or ask us questions we do not have answers to. But out of that 43% only 5% are hostile to hearing the gospel message. The rest are searching for something - searching for hope, peace, love, and joy, but they do not know where to find it. 

We have become so afraid of people standing against us, that we fail to stand for God. Or we think that standing for God means having certain politically beliefs, when really at its very heart standing for God is about sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ with people that we have relationships with so that their lives can be transformed like ours have. 

What do you fear the most about sharing your faith? 

In what situations do you feel most comfortable sharing your faith? 

Prayer: God of proclamation - we confess that sometimes we get so afraid of what people might say to us or might think about us, that we do not readily share your good news. We forget that we have the good news - the source of all love, peace, joy, and hope - that people are looking for. Forgive us, O Lord, for keeping this message to ourselves and strengthen us to be sent out to proclaim it once again.

Thursday: “Be Strong and Courageous” - Joshua 1: 7-9, Phil. 4:13

I am part of a group of pastors in our district that meet once a month for a class in leadership development. One month we had an interesting discussion on whether you could measure the success of a local church. In today’s passage we are told that it is possible for Joshua (and us as the church) to be successful, but I think a misunderstanding of the word success has mislead us. 

For Joshua, success looked like entering the promise land. For the local church, it looks like introducing new disciples to the promised land, by having them come to know Jesus Christ, and helping all disciples grow deeper in their faith. That may look different for each local church, but we are called to lead folks to the Promised Land, just as Joshua was to lead the Israelites. 

How does our church best introduce folks to Jesus Christ? How does our church help people grow in their faith? How can we do these things better? 

Prayer: God, we confess that we have let the world’s ideas about success get in the way of your dream for our church. We confess that sometimes we try to be the church down the street instead of the church you have called us to be. We confess that sometimes we set aside the hard work of making new disciples in order to maintain the status quo. Help us about to be who you have called us to be. Amen. 

Friday: “Get Ready” - Joshua 1: 10-11, Luke 14:28, 

Even though Joshua was commissioned by God to lead the people across the Jordan River and into the promised land, they still had to prepare. They had three days to pack up and prepare themselves physically and spiritually for the journey that lies ahead.

Two common mistakes we can make as the local church when faced with the call of God are to: 1. not prepare. We jump right in, instead of praying for God’s strength and courage. Or 2. think we are never prepared enough so we don’t act. We don’t have all of the details worked out, so we say the planning is not complete and thus we cannot move forward. Planning is not something we can gloss over or avoid, but it is also not a crutch that can keep us from acting. The people of Israel were given a very concrete time to prepare, and then… then they went to cross the Jordan. 

Do you often find yourself over-preparing or under-preparing for what God is calling you to do?

How do you prepare spiritually for the call of God on your life? How does the church prepare for the call of God to be used in this community for the sake of the gospel message?

Prayer: God, strengthen us that we can take the first steps of faith. Help us be prepared for what you have called us to do. Help us to face our fears, O God, by preparing ourselves physically and spiritually for the call you have placed on our hearts. Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

You are invited to read and pray this week’s text and topic: “Be Courageous: God is Our Help” - Joshua 3: 1-13

Family Activity: Its the New Year. Create a list with your family of 3-5 ways you can be strengthened by God together for the coming year. How can you integrate this list into your life together?