“Be strong and courageous!
Don’t tremble or be terrified,
Because the Lord your God is with you
wherever you go.”
Joshua 1:6, 9, 18
Moses was dead. And now, Joshua had some incredibly worn sandals to fill. He was
literally stepping into a leadership role like none other. God’s People were still enroute
to their Promised Land, but now without their great leader. Was he the right man for the
job? Would this traveling nation – God’s chosen people – be able to follow this new
leader? Could he be trusted to hear God’s Voice as Moses had?
How might Joshua have felt as he stepped into his new, history-making responsibility of
bringing God’s People into their historic Homeland, and all the unknowns that were
ahead. He was stepping into some incredibly respected sandals, heading into a Land
that God had Promised them. . . but they had not yet experienced.
Sometimes we, too, experience a life-change that we’ve not lived before. We do not
know what lies ahead, and we do not have control. We can plan . . . we can research,
try to gather as much information to prepare us for this new step in life. But ultimately,
we have to put our hand into His and trust Him.
God’s people had history in the Land of Israel. But they had been in Egypt for a long,
long time. What lay ahead? They had some information, but none of them had first-
hand experience of the realities of the Homeland of their history.
Joshua gives us a glimpse of the condition of his people as they neared the Land of
their history. “Don’t tremble. Don’t be terrified. . . “ Joshua knew his people. And it
seems that they were a “hot mess” as they neared their final destination. Imagine a
whole nation “trembling” and “terrified!” Have you ever experienced that kind of mass
emotional melt-down all at the same time? Together? These are not merely internal
emotions . . . there was physical, visible terror being experienced on a national level!
Joshua had no military defense to surround them. There was no “back-up plan” for the
people. They were going into the “unknown” with no military protection or power. Men,
women, children, elderly, handicapped, etc. . . Refugees who had been surviving in thedesert for a long, long time. They knew the stories, . . . the history. But they had only
the reports of the few “spies” who had gone ahead to get a glimpse of the Land that
God had promised them. The Land of their history. The Land of their future.
As we today follow the Footsteps of Jesus on this earth. . . as we look to His
Promises… hold to His Hand as we walk through our life on this earth, we are aware
that this is not our eternal Home. It’s our “for now” . . . but He gives us glimpses of the
“forever Home” that awaits ahead. So we stay close . . . holding tightly and following
His lead, with the assurance that He is right here with us, and trustworthy to bring us
safely to our Final Destination. All that matters is that He Will Be There.
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