“Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:7-9).
The Lord had a heart to heart with Joshua at the opening of the book of Joshua. This was because Joshua was about to do some serious work. A job that had been waiting to be done for almost 400 years! He was about to lead the Israelites into the long-promised Promised Land. After 40 years of wandering in the desert, they were about to finally go in.
But right before they did, the Lord gave Joshua these instructions. "Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it" (vs. 7-8).
So what does it take to be prosperous and successful? The formula isn't much different today than it was thousands of years ago. Read the Bible. Mediate on it day and night. Don't let it leave your lips. Don't turn to the left or to the right. Why are these things so important? Because the second we stop reading the Bible, the minute something other than the fruit of the Word comes upon our mouths, the second we stray to the left or to the right, then we become unfit for the task ahead of us. The task ahead of us is what God has planned for us. We know our ultimate goal is to win souls for Christ and to further His kingdom here on earth. But in order to fulfill that mission successfully, we must keep our eyes on Christ. To know Him deeply. To love Him deeply. He is the key to our spiritual success. And when you make Him first, He will open up doors that delight us, because it is then we will be ready to walk through those doors, not only beause they're what we desire, but because our hearts and desires will be aligned with Christ's, which is the ultimate goal (Psalm 37:4, John 14:13-14). We will be ready to do what God has called us to do for His glory!
Stay focused. Stay in tune. We have a great mission up ahead, but we will only get there successfully if we stay in God's Word, and stay straight on the path that He has for us.
"Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9).
As always, thanks for reading. Feel free to connect with me through the comments below, the "Contact Me" page, or through Facebook and Twitter. God bless.
Until next time,
Stephanie :)