Joshua 1:1-9
Fall is in the air.
Do you ever wake up, and feel the crispness and know… fall
is coming? It’s time for the changing of the seasons.
Sometimes you want it and sometimes you don’t. This year, I
wanted summer to carry on a little longer. We are in a season we have never
been in – expecting a baby. This season has come through years, and years, and
years of prayer. There has been some laughter at the requirements of
infertility, but a lot of this journey has been heartache. There are certain
roads that leave you feeling dry and uncertain. To have a want for so long, to
receive so many no’s – time seems to drag on. Then poof – an answer comes, and
here we are – it’s almost mid-August and I am entering my 3rd
trimester. Where the heck did time go?
As I leave the ‘honeymoon’ phase of pregnancy (2nd
trimester) I am realizing more and more that time is about to change. I know
that some of you seasoned moms may be chuckling at the fact that I don’t know
how much it will change… J
But I realize I have had a life that God has filled with
adventure. Joe and I have lived as independent adults for soon to be 15 years
of marriage. We have traveled, we lived 3 incredible years in NYC, and we have
seen movements of God I don’t think we would have seen had this child graced
our presence before now.
Thankfully, he has allowed my heart to enjoy a lot of those
times. I know when we live in anticipation of a request not answered, it is so
easy to get lost in the moment and think we are living a life less than perfect
because we don’t have that answer. I am now realizing that life is about to
end. I am a little worried about this adjustment… I was not one of the baby sitters
club members… I may have read the books, but I spent summers at camps-not
babysitting. So this is a whole new world… and I’m pretty sure Joe has never
changed a diaper.
So here we go, a few months left before this change. I want
to enjoy it. Even if I am starting to walk like a duck.
But I am about to enter a lifelong dream. This baby boy is
coming, and how I’ve longed for him. Isn’t it just like us to want something so
bad, then start being a little fearful when it comes? I like to think of myself
as an adventurer – but there is always a tiny bit of reservation right before
the plunge. It’s the moment where we eat our words as we tell others to go out
and be brave.
God crowned this year with the book of Joshua. I love that story. It’s a
story of second chances. Did you realize that? It’s also the story of waiting
even though you think you’ve done everything you should…
The second chance is for the Israelites. Back in the book of
Numbers (chapters 13 & 14), the Israelites had arrived at the Promised Land.
They sent 12 spies in to scour the land and see what awaited them. This after
all, was the land promised by God. Well, when the spies returned… 10 of them
were scared and 2 were brave (one which happened to be Joshua). They brought
back the bounty of what could be theirs, they saw a land flowing with milk and
honey – but they let the thoughts of the giants stop them in their tracks. Only
2 believed they could overtake the giants because God was on their side. Needless
to say, the 10 won out, they almost stoned Joshua and Caleb for wanting to go
into the Promised Land. The people decided to keep wandering the dessert
instead of taking their land. By the way, Joshua was Moses’s assistant.
40 years later, they come back to same spot. It begins in
Joshua 1. The movement begins with the death of Moses. In verse 2 he says to Joshua
– ‘“Moses my servant is dead. Therefore, the time has come for you to lead
these people, the Israelites, across the Jordan River into the land I am giving
them.’
Boom – 2nd chance. It is now time to enter the Promised
Land. Did they take it? You bet. Can anyone guess what God told Joshua over and
over? Yes – Be strong and courageous. He says it 3 times between verse 6 &
9. God had this in His hands. He knew no harm would befall them. Joshua had to
trust and go. Joshua was prepared. He had been in training at the side of Moses
for 40 years. In fact, the Lord was not only taking them into the Promised
Land, he was giving Joshua the Land of everywhere he set foot. God was granting
Joshua success. This is the other part of the deal – not only was He giving him
the promise, He was giving him success. God wants you to be successful! I heard
this at a conference this year. We don’t always understand the waiting, but it
molds us into people of success in the Lord.
The more I find out about this walk – the more I see the
purpose of attaining Christlikeness. Humility is key. Walking humbly by your
Lord and learning is the way. We see it in the life of Joseph in Genesis, we
see it the years in the desert with the Israelites. We even see it in our Lord.
Jesus was 30 before he entered His ministry – and the years before were built
with learning and knowing the scripture, and growing his craft as a carpenter.
We want to rush in and conquer. We want to assert our gifts
and talents. We want to prove ourselves, our learning ability, our creativity.
We want to be successful. God will let us do that – but that success comes at
our own abilities, and our talent – and it will fail.
When we go it with the Lord, He opens doors no man can shut[1].
He creates a way where there seems to be no way. Nothing is impossible with Him[2].
He creates a way in the wilderness, a stream in the wasteland[3].
Shouldn’t we realize that we need to let Him build our success[4]?
Let Him make the way? It is hard to wait. Believe me – I know. It is hard to
stay in a place where you feel ‘least’ equipped – but I wonder if our warrior
Joshua had a hard time staying at Moses side until his time came? I think we
see an example of how to be. Wait on the Lord[5].
He will show you. He will open doors. He will create circumstances of
unbelievable opportunity.
But here’s the kicker – make the choice to go when He opens
that door… Who wants to wait around in the desert another 40 years?
I learned a lesson. I had to face surgery to walk through my
baby door. This was one of my biggest fears. I kept wondering why we didn’t
find out about endometriosis until years later… and I know now. I probably would
not have agreed to surgery. I didn’t have a lot of symptoms, and the only way
to find out was through exploratory surgery.
This scared me to death – and I had to go through years of waiting to
realize God had this.
Once I had the surgery – it was a literal breeze, with a week-long
recovery. And 2 weeks after surgery, I got pregnant. I realized, I had let many
years of fear kept me in a desert.
Where are you right now? What doors may be opening? What is
trying to keep you from walking through that door?
The season is changing. Go and get your Promised Land!
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