The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand. Psalms 37: 23-24
Have you ever said “if only I had ……? Well, after the dramatic crossover through the Jordan river and the takeover of Jericho, the Israelites were overjoyed! Instead of maintaining humility, they began to express overconfidence. After the spies Joshua sent out to the city of Ai came back, they only recommended that just about 3,000 warriors should go and take over that city. They made the decision and certainly underestimated their enemies!
But unfortunately, they were soundly defeated! The Ai men chased, killed 36 of them, created fear, paralyzed them and caused their courage to melt away! We see this in Joshua 7:2-3. Sometime when overconfidence and pride creeps into our lives this is what happens! Instead of walking in humility and focusing on God’s enablement, we look at our own achievements and accomplishments in our strength. That’s when we open the door to the enemy to start the chase like he did with the Ai chase!
The Lord revealed to Joshua that not only had they sinned and but had also broken the covenant. Sin will cause God to withdraw from us. But his arms are always wide open to us to run back to him and to reach out for forgiveness. We have an example from David in Psalm 51:10 who cried to God and said “Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a right spirit with me!”
The other sad issue which also occurred during that defeat in Ai is when disobedience crept in by a man called Achan who stole what was meant to be set apart for the Lord and went to hide in his house. He broke the covenant of the Lord! He had sinned and contributed to cause for Israel’s defeat. The choices we make will lead us to victory or failure! God never honors disobedience! This is a humbling testimony with regard to seriousness of sin, and this does not only affect our own lives, but lives of others as well!
But, remember a failure in life does not make life a failure! It doesn’t have to be a lasting defeat! We have the mercy of God available when we turn to Him. Isaiah 41:13 we are comforted with the words "For I, the LORD your God, hold your right hand; it is I who says to you, 'Fear not, I am the one who helps you."
Dear Lord, help us to guard against sin in our lives, not to be casual, to hate sin to run from it for so many reasons. Teach us to trust you at all times. Amen
Reflection: Even when we face setbacks or obstacles, God is still there to uphold us and keep us from falling. Let’s sink our hearts to God’s truth!
Comments