After Moses died, God sent Joshua into the promised land with some other 4,000,000 Hebrews. They were to overtake all the pagan nations of the land—really wicked and fierce people, who were, of course, ready to defend their land and their pagan customs. But what did God tell Joshua time and time again? Just these two words: Be strong and courageous. What an epiphany to me. Men, those are the words that we need to cling to with our families, at work, and in our nation right now. We’re facing perhaps the most consequential and divisive election in our lifetimes and perhaps our nation’s history.
A lot of things ares wirling around us in Ukraine, Taiwan, Israel, and North Korea that could change all of our lives dramatically and forever. I don’t want to be political. But I don’t think that anyone would suggest our present leadership is strong and courageous. But what about you and me? Are we any better? . There’s never a time for the Christian to be timid and weak, but especially today—right now—families, ministries and our nation needs men and women of courage and personal strength.
When I fifteen years old I heard an evangelist speak to us about God’s call to full time ministry. The power of his words, his presentation, his folksy manner was compelling. I was sure that God was talking to me, about being a pastor. And that night I accepted that call. At the end of the service I was able to meet the evangelist and thank him for his message. I will never forget what it felt like to shake his hand, though. My father, my uncles and the dads I knew as a young man would squeeze your hand when you shook it. It hurt sometimes! But the idea being conveyed was this handshake represents a man’s confidence in another man. Someone a handshake, at least back then, showed your honesty and the strength of you life. But when I shook this evangelist’s hand, it was like I was squeezing a dead fish. I’ll never forget that. It was neither manly or inspiring. I mad a promise to myself that if I did, in fact, become a preacher or evangelist, my handshake, and my body, my strength would be inspiring, not insipid.
To my knowledge Joshua was nothing like that evangelist, at least in terms of his handshake. Joshua was a man’s man, and he was God’s man also. He was totally devoted, obedient and subservient to God. He did all God told him to do and was passionate about it. And he was strong and courageous. At the age of 80 he could still wield a sword! He had strength in his blood and bones! And he was courageous! Oh that God would give us leaders like this in Raleigh and Washington, DC.
When it came to choosing right or wrong…deciding between God or popularity, here’s what he told 4,000,000 Israelites: “But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:15, NIV. Amen and amen! What courage! The Israelites could have stoned him right then. But his courage, his tenacity, his determination to do what was righteous in God’s eyes inspired and infected those listening to him!
Later, in the book of Acts. Paul was on a ship with over 250 people, and for 14 days they were tossed about in a horrible hurricane! The ship was about to sink, or so they thought, but Paul told people on the ship to “have courage, I have talked to God….” And it worked! His faith….his confidence….his relationship with Jesus Christ inspired and encourage over 250 people to not give up! They were all saved—not because they trusted God—-but because Paul trusted God, and they had faith in Paul’s words. That’s how it starts off in evangelism! You have to have integrity like Paul did.
You see, the perfect man, the best to ever live—- was Jesus. He was a carpenter, not a wimp, not a coward, not a worrier. Jesus is our hero—and His life is the example of how our minds and emotions should respond and react to crisis and trouble. He was strong and courageous. So was Peter and the other disciples. So was David and the prophets. So was Shadrach, Meshak or Abednego! These three young men sent into exile were accused of worshipping God, and the king threatened to burn them alive if they did not recant. So what did they say? “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
The same, of course, for Jesus: He never resisted His tormenters—even though He knew what was coming. God has called us men—-and women—-to be strong and courageous. When one of the greatest theologians of his time, Deitrich Bonhoeffer, was executed by the Nazis, he knew what it meant. He would be stripped naked, walked to the gallows, and slowly strangled to death with piano wire. But he also must have known that the Nazis had a sadistic habit of letting the execution carry on for six hours. They would not hang you and break your neck, they would strangle the victim, then have a physician revive him, then strangle them again and again and again. to prolong the death and make the murder as torturous as possible. And yet, the physician attending Bonhoeffer’s execution said that he never saw a man approach his execution so peacefully and with such calm.
We’re inspired by men like that! We fall apart when our finances are crimped, or when our AC unit breaks down, or think we’re not being respected at the market. Good grief! Are you living for God in such a way that you are NOT afraid of what Satan, or the evil people of the world can throw at you? If God is our source of strength, vision and inspiration, then we can say with Nehemiah, “The joy of the Lord is my strength…”(Nehemiah 8:10, NIV)
So here’s the question: ’Do I have His joy?’ Because if I do, I also have His strength—the ability to overcome. If I don’t have His joy. I am a spiritual invalid. To have His joy is to have a confidence and certainty of His deliverance, His hand and His covering that prohibits darkness from invading my imagination. There is light and a sense that, “It’s going to work out!” that produces this well-spring of expectation and confidence that the world cannot understand.
The joy comes from knowing Him, remaining in Him, seeking Him early in the morning and throughout the day! This joy is a fruit, or naturally occurring phenomena, that can only happen if we are connected to the source of joy—the Holy Spirit.
Are you connected? Do you know Him? Have you experienced the Joy of the Lord? Is the strength of the Lord, through His Holy Spirit yours today? It can be. You only have to ask for it.
“My son, do not let wisdom and understanding out of your sight, preserve sound judgment and discretion; they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck. Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble. When you lie down, you will not be afraid;when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet, you will have no fear of sudden disaster (Proverbs 3:22-24, NIV)
Does this encourage you? I hope so. I am learning that the cycle of all things, outside of the eternal God, is decay and death....slow, or in some cases, rapid and unexpected. The things we build will not last. And the time we devote to our work and ventures will eventually be distant, foggy memories, with no permanence, if God is not inspiring and sustaining the work we do.
“Nehemiah said, ‘Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.’ (Nehemiah 8:10, NIV)
So I must ask myself a very simple set of questions: First, do I feel spiritual strength? That is, can I hold on, endure, put up with adversity, persevere, never give up the fight and serve as a spiritual warrior when those around me might be falling? Do I have inner strength and fortitude? If not, the reason is that my source of strength is insufficient.
You can work out in the gym hours every day, swim hundreds of laps in the pool or run dozens of miles—but if you are not properly feeding your body the proper proteins, amino acids, carb, nutrients, vitamins, and so forth, you will never make any progress in your workouts.
The same holds true spiritually. The source of our strength is the joy of the Lord. That is what not only allows us to enjoy an abundant life, but also to overcome the things that would cause a normal man or woman to turn tail and run!
Paul understood this superlative joy. He said, “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13, NIV) Isaiah learned that, “He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.” (Isaiah 40:29, NIV) David wrote that, “The Lord gives his people strength. He is a safe fortress for his anointed king” (Psalm 28:8 NIV), and again, “The Lord is my light and my salvation- so why should I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1 NIV).
Do you want courage and strength? God is the source!!!
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