God compliments

Joshua showed himself to be a strong and mighty warrior—not by his own might or strength, but by being devoted to the Lord. “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Deut 1:9.

This is not the compliment. This is the commandment that God gave to Joshua. The compliment came because Joshua followed this direction; he trusted God. Let me give you an example: We know the story of Jericho. (I sing the song to my son, with some words that I made up to personalize it to my son). Before they went to Jericho, Joshua stopped at a place called Gilgal to circumcise all the men who had not yet been circumcised. Joshua and Caleb are the only two who already were. You see, all the men of fighting age who had come out of Egypt and were circumcised had died in the desert, because of their disobedience and failure to trust God. Caleb and Joshua were the only two who trusted the Lord. After they renewed this covenant with the Lord, as they neared Jericho, Joshua saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. What do you think happened? He stood at a distance and shouted to the man, “Are you with us or against us?” No. That’s what most of us might do, but not Joshua. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” Joshua 5:13-14. Joshua was showing his trust in the Lord, just as he did 40 years earlier when he and Caleb saw the giants in Canaan and knew that the Lord would hand them over to Israel. Joshua was under Moses in those days, but now he was second in Israel only to the Lord himself. The Lord promised to be with Joshua if he was careful to obey the law. And the Lord already knew that Joshua would. That’s why in Joshua 1:5 the Lord told him, “No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life.” That’s a compliment worth hearing from anyone; imagine hearing it from the Lord Almighty! If you trust in the Lord, He will never leave you nor forsake you. The proof is written in Joshua 24:31: “Israel served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua.” Joshua was a strong leader because he trusted in the Lord. To no one else is it written “No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life.”

My son:
Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid.
The Lord goes before you each and every day.