Be Strong And Courageous!
BRD REFLECTIONS:
Joshua 1:1-18 and Psalm 1 (NIV)
(Aw Choon Hui, Lay Leader)
READ:
Joshua Chapter 1 (ESV)
[Note: In this passage, look for the 3 times God used the phrase to “be strong and courageous”, as His encouragement and commission to Joshua. Note also the same phrase in v18, when the people replied and also exhorted Joshua to “be strong and courageous”.]
OBSERVE:
Moses was dead and the weight of leadership now fell upon Joshua’s shoulders to lead the people of Israel into the Promised Land. Joshua was part of the original scouting team over 40 years ago and he knew firsthand the dangers and the formidable task before him of uniting and rallying a fractured people to fight the fierce battles that now lay before them.
If I had been Joshua, I would have had many doubts, given the earlier rebellion against Moses and God. But God knew that he needed the assurance and so spoke these words of encouragement to remind him that the God of the universe was with him.
I love these promises that God gave to Joshua. And I have often claimed them in faith when faced with challenges beyond my puny capability:
- “I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you” (v5);
- “The Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (v9).
APPLY:
I am a self-confessed introvert. When I was younger, I thought that all leadership roles would naturally go to the extroverts, who are temperamentally much more suited to lead and rally the troops. Over the years, God has shown me how people with different temperaments (both introverts and extroverts) can help complement one another in serving the body of Christ. God sees all that we do to serve and honour Him, whether done in secret or in the limelight.
I believe that God takes delight in using people whom the world thinks are unsuitable or unfit to be of any good to carry out significant tasks in the kingdom of God, if only to surprise us.
At the start of a new year, when faced with new roles and challenges, I take great comfort in God’s assurance to Joshua and to me – “Be strong and courageous!”
Just like Joshua, I know for a fact that I cannot do anything in my strength. I truly need the Lord to walk beside me and steady me when I falter. But I also need to do my part, which is to keep His commands and draw closer to Him each day, as I let Him speak to my heart.
DO:
As I look to the new year ahead, I want to do the following:
- Set aside protected time with God each day to pray for His wisdom and strength to do what He has set out for me to do;
- Step forth in faith, remembering His call to be strong and courageous as I do my best in serving Him, and leaving the results in His hands.
My job is to trust Him with unwavering faith because I know that His heart is good.
PRAY:
Lord, I surrender this new year to You, together with all my hopes and fears. Help me to be strong and courageous to carry out Your work, knowing that You are always with me and will never leave or forsake me. I thank You in Jesus’ name, Amen!
