Read: Joshua 7:3-4“There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.” - Joshua 1:5
Moses faithfully led the children of Israel through every step of their journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. This included the forty years of aimless wandering in the wilderness, when God doomed the twelve tribes because of their sin of unbelief and their failure to obey His directive. Every person, who relied on their own understanding of the situation ahead of them, rather than trusting in God’s direction, died in the wilderness. From that entire generation, only Moses, Joshua and Caleb survived.
In the end, even Moses failed to obey. In his anger over the constant complaining of the Israelites, he struck the rock twice, instead of speaking to it as God commanded him to do (Numbers 20:8-11). After this, God anointed Joshua to assume the leadership of Israel. God also restrained Moses from reaping the reward of his work. He was not allowed to enter into the Promised Land (Numbers 20:12).
As a young man, untried in the realm of full command in leadership, Joshua relied heavily on God’s direction and wisdom. God gave him repeated victories and Joshua’s confidence grew with each success. When they finally arrived at the tiny city of Ai, the scouts reported that the city had few men. Joshua felt confident that his army would come away with another victory; therefore, he failed to consult the Lord’s direction for this battle.
God did not let Joshua down, nor did He go back on His promise to give them the Promised Land, but He did not honor Joshua’s attempt at self-reliance. The army lost the battle, and the survivors came home disheveled, discouraged and defeated. We can learn lessons from the lives of both Moses and Joshua.
Success is ours, only as we rely on God for His guidance and as we walk in His ways. The key to victory is to remember the importance of trusting God and obeying His directions. God gave us His Spirit to guide our every step. No matter how insignificant the task, we can seek His counsel, walk in His strength and enjoy His success in everything we say and do. Self-reliance leads to ruin; reliance on God’s Spirit leads to success.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, seeking Your direction gives us the confidence to accomplish Your will with our lives. Remind us to rely on You every step of the way, and not to lean on our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6). Thought for the Day:
Failure is not a necessary ingredient when learning to succeed. 