And they answered Joshua, saying, All that you command us we will do, and wherever you send us, we will go. (Josh 1:16)
When they answered Joshua, they were acknowledging the call the Lord had for them. They did not want to go, but they went anyway. Fear is our biggest enemy. Fear that we will fail, fear that we will fall, fear that we will be alone. If God can move a mountain, what are we so afraid of?
I've had a week that has been filled with answered prayers - almost all of them at the same time. They were not answered the way I was hoping that they would be answered, but they were answered just the same. I'm waiting on one more confirmation to conclude the final prayer, but with everything else the Lord has done for me this past week, I do not doubt that it will come.
We get comfortable in our surroundings, we become complacent in our prayers. Sometimes we need to be 'taken and shaken' to the core of our faith. The little things that happen to cause us discomfort are sometimes the "training" we need, or the "proof" we desire to get us to be willing to accept God's plan for us and the calling of our heart for which he so deeply loves. We are human and need to be convinced that we are doing the things that God wants us to do - so much so that we insist on the perfect sign! Not wanting to make a mistake can sometimes cause us to miss an opportunity. I find my peace in the Lord. Whereever I go, he will go. When I say to him "but what about this, or what about that," he reassures me that all will be alright and I will be just fine. We are all given what we need for as long as we need it and it will then be replaced with something new and it will be just as promising and glorious as we allow it to be. We cannot love the gifts of God if we don't continue to follow where he leads us. "And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, [or] to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people [shall be] my people, and thy God my God (Ruth 1:16)"
Sometimes we want to hold out until the last possible moment, hoping for that "miracle" that saves us from what it is we are seeing ahead of us. The reality is that sometimes that miracle happens and we fail to see it because we insist that God do what we want, when he is clearly showing us what he wants! He always knows best, he always answers your prayers and he always finds a way. He will make a path for you and design the circumstances to be all that you need them to be. He will not leave you in the hands of the enemy and he will provide for you! Trust in him, have faith in him, honor and praise him and he will bless you. When your time of exile is over, be wise enough to see the writing on the wall and prepare for the next assignment he has for you!
