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God is faithful in all things, and He will be faithful to pull us through when we obey Him.

After studying the book of Joshua, this was the resounding theme I found throughout the 24 chapters. The key: we have to make a choice to be obedient and faithful to the Lord.

“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 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)

This is true in our journey of widowhood. We can choose to live a life of misery apart from God, or we can choose to get up and show up each day (though some days seem nearly impossible!), living for the Lord and His plans for our lives and using what we have been through to help others. I’ve learned that obedience can be very challenging, but I have never regretted following where the Lord leads.

In the book of Joshua, God leads the Israelites into many battles to claim the Promised Land. After Joshua and the Israelites experienced great victory in Jericho, God put a ban on the city. Anything that was not destroyed, like gold and silver, was to be dedicated to the lord as evidence of trusting Him. However, one of the Israelites, Achan, was unfaithful. From there, God called the Israelites to conquer Ai. Joshua sent spies to check out the land. When they returned, they told him not everyone needed to join the fight.

“Not all the army will have to go up against Ai. Send two or three thousand men to take it and do not weary the whole army, for only a few people live there. So about three thousand went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai who killed about 36 of them. They chased the Israelites from the city gate … At this the hearts of the people melted in fear…”
Joshua 7:3-5 (NIV)

This is the only defeat recorded in the book of Joshua. Joshua lost more than 30 men that day, when it wasn’t necessary. Ai was smaller than Jericho, so how did this happen? When Achan went against God, consequences fell on all of the people of Israel. This, in conjunction with the fact Joshua was eager to move forward for the Lord but, resting on his success at Jericho, it seems he did not make time to get alone with God to ask for His guidance and strength.

When we try to do it on our own, we will eventually always fail. The Lord wants us to come to Him with every battle, every disappointment, every heartbreak, everything. Draw near to him and put on the full armor of God. Let him carry you and give you the strength to fight through the most horrific side of grief, as well as the daily battles.

God eventually led the Israelites back to conquer Ai. Because Joshua and the people were rightly related to the Lord, God promised they could turn the place of defeat into a place of victory! The Lord is in the business of turning what was meant to harm us into good!

Obedience is listening and obeying even when it makes no sense. Even when the battle in front of us seems too big, God is bigger. Even when the burden seems too heavy to bare, even when we feel as if we can’t go on without our husbands … Even when holidays and anniversaries pile up. Even when we are lonely and our hearts are broken and there seems to be no way through, God will make a way when we lean into Him and obey His calling.

“The Lord gave them rest on every side just as he had sworn to their ancestors. Not one of their enemies withstood them; the Lord gave all their enemies into their hands. Not one of all the Lord’s good promises to Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.”
Joshua 21:44-45 (NIV)

Look to the One who will never leave you or forsake you, and walk in faith, sisters. The same God who was faithful to the Israelites will be faithful to you!

Father, We know that You are sovereign and You are good. Even when it doesn’t make sense and we do not understand, help us to be obedient to You. When we step into battles that You have not called us in, nudge us, redeem us and redirect us. Remind us that You are always working for Your glory and our good! Amen.