Thoughts on Joshua 4
So the priests who bore the ark stood in the midst of the Jordan until everything was finished that the Lord had commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua; and the people hurried and crossed over.
Joshua 4:10 (NKJV)
New Beginnings are not automatic. They are created. We saw this much in Gen 1 where God created new Beginnings from the void, chaos and darkness. It took God 6 days and in Gen 1:31, God saw everything He had created was very good. We are created in God’s image and so we already have a basis for creating our new beginnings, irrespective of the phase we are presently. A new beginning is possible whether we are,
1. Starting a new venture
2. Stuck in stagnation
3. Suffered severe setbacks
4. Experienced a shameful end of a particular chapter in life.
The Israelites were on the verge of a new beginning as they set to cross the Jordan to the Promised Land.
There are specific things God spoke to us concerning 2023 which are yet to manifest, but there is a need for us to be continually conscious of the parts we have to play in all of these. Quite often, we live under the illusion that God will do everything for us. No doubt, God will do His part, but He will not do what He has given you charge of.
The promise of God to Israel was to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, their responsibility was to carry out certain instructions that will ensure they get there.
In today’s reading, the instructions was for the Priests bearing the Ark to stand in the midst of the Jordan till all the people had completely crossed over.
We may not know the exact number of people that crossed, but we are told in verse 13 that forty thousand armed for battle crossed over before the Lord to the plains of Jericho. (This implies that the total that crossed were hundreds of thousands). We may not also be able to estimate how long the Priests stood in the midst of the Jordan, but knowing that their new beginning depended on it, they stood there, bearing the Ark.
One can only imagine the level of pain or discomfort that was attached to this. (May be we should imagine lifting up our hands for one hour even without carrying anything) The fact is, the priests may have been tempted to seek relieve or take a break, to rest their hands or sit down. But this wasn’t the case.
They Persisted till everyone had crossed over. Persistence is thus an important key to creating our new beginning.
We are in the second half of the year and some of us may have given up on seeing the manifestation of the promises of God for 2023. Let’s be encouraged, God will never abandon us in the middle of nowhere. The chapter today is reminding us to PERSIST until ALL is accomplished.
One area we must do this is in the place of prayer( Luke 18:1).
Many people do not stand in prayer until all issues are solved. Some of us stood for a short time, experienced certain levels of successes and then removed our feet before crossing over.
Scriptures such as Phil 3:12-14, 2Tim 4:5, Heb 10:30 have more to say on persistence.
It is true that God has given us Dominion over the earth (Gen 1:26), but dominion is not just about authority, it comes with responsibility. Now is the time to arise and take responsibility for our individual lives to birth a new beginning.
