When the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carried the ark of the covenant ahead of the people. Now the Jordan overflows is banks throughout the harvest. But as soon as the priests carrying the ark reached the Jordan, their feet touched the water at its edge, and the water flowing downstream stood still. Rising up in a mass that extended as far as Adam, a city next to Zarethan. The water flowing downstream to the Sea of Arabah, (the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. And the people crossed opposite Jericho. The priests carrying the ark of the LORD’s stood firmly on dry ground, while all Israel crossed on dry ground until the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan.
Joshua 3:14-17 HCS
John Wayne once said that “courage is being scared to death, but saddling up and riding out anyway.” Having lived on the river for a few years and having seen my share of floods, I can’t imagine stepping into a flooded river carrying something as heavy as the ark of the covenant probably was. But this is what God told Joshua to have the priests do. God promised to take care of them. So they did it and because they did it, they were able to go into the promised land. There were other miracles that would take place, like the battle of Jericho. There were miracles that had happened with the Israelites before this, such as the parting of the Red Sea. So, they were no strangers to what God could do.
Sometimes God asks us to do scary things. He asks us to trust Him on matters that are just plain scary. We are to tithe and trust God to provide for us. It’s scary to turn over the first 10 per cent of your finances and just trust that God will provide, but He will. He’s done it for me and I have heard from countless other people where He has done the same for them. It’s scary to trust God when He tells us to do something that we think just won’t work. Remember this is the same God that parted the Red Sea, that stopped the Jordan from flowing, that let a scrawny teenager kill a giant with a slingshot, that shut the mouths of lions, that allowed three men to come out of a fiery furnace with no soot or smell of smoke on them. This is the same God that sent His son to be born of a virgin, crucified, and resurrected. Nothing is impossible with God (Matthew 19:26, Luke 1:37)
Where the problem comes in is that sometimes we let our fear overtake our faith. The devil wants us to fear and not trust God. The devil wants us to shake in our boots or shake our heads when God tells us to do something that for mere mortals seems impossible. We have to be willing to step into the water. The priest had to step into this overflowing river for God to stop the flow. God didn’t stop the river and then let them step in. David had to face that giant with his slingshot. Daniel had to spend the night in the lions den. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had to go walk around in that fiery furnace. He is with us when we are in a bad situation. We simply have to trust in Him.
I hope that if you don’t have a good strong relationship with Christ that you will develop one. It is truly awesome to feel His presence in your life. If you do have a good relationship then I hope you are doing all you can to grow to the point of maturity where you blindly trust Him.
In law enforcement there were times when I did things that I was honestly afraid to do. I always felt that if someone never felt even just a little bit of fear then either they were liars or there was something seriously wrong with them. But I can honestly say that I never went into a bad situation without praying and trusting God to bring me through it. In the academy they taught us that the most important goal of that day was to go home at night. As a child of God I knew that no matter what happened I was going home whether it be my home here on earth or my eternal home with my Heavenly Father.
My prayer for you today is that if you don’t have that kind of trusting relationship with God that you work on it. You will still have times of fear, but they will become less and less as you learn to trust God. God’s got this! I want to conclude with one of my favorite Bible verses. This is what God told Joshua when Joshua was installed as leader after Moses’ death, Joshua 1:9, “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. So saddle up and ride out!
Have a great day!