Begin Again, Day 20 We can’t know all the motives of others. Read Joshua chapter 9. We saw the deception that took place yesterday. We have to realize that when Gid is working and moving in our lives, not everyone is going to be happy and excited about that. In fact, that may be why we have people who try to deceive us. They see that God is working and moving in your life. They also see that God’s working in your life might not give them exactly what they want. As a result, they get upset and resort to deception. The people actually admit that to Joshua. They knew…

Begin Again, Day 19 Don’t get tricked. Read Joshua chapter 9 While all the nations around Israel were trembling in fear, one nation took action. They devised a plan to trick the Israelites into signing a peace treaty with them, so they would not be destroyed. It’s interesting to realize that the countries weren’t even thinking that they would win against Israel in a fight. They knew they would lose, and so they knew they were gonna have to resort to something out of the ordinary in order to be able to survive. They made plans to trick the Israelites, and they did. How were they able to trick them?…

Begin Again, Day 18 Victories mean worship. Read Joshua chapter 8. The people of Israel experienced incredible victory over AI. With this victory comes another opportunity to worship. Do we take the opportunity to worship the Lord after every victory in our lives? God works amazing victories in our lives every single day, and he deserves praise for the big victories and the small victories. What do we need to praise God for today? Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/otyrqR56pmw

Begin Again, Day 17 Begin Again… again. Read Joshua chapter 8. The people of Israel messed up, but they brought it before the Lord and they have dealt with their sin. Now it’s time to start over again. When we look to begin again, we often need to remember that he won’t do that just one time. We are still human and we will continue to mess up. We will continue to come back to God and beg his forgiveness and ask for his help. As a result, we will start over multiple times, just like the Israelites. We have to be willing to pick back up and keep moving…

Begin Again, Day 16 What is the value of your life? And what is the cost of disobedience? Read Joshua, chapter 7. Joshua follows the Lord’s direction and gets to the bottom of the disobedience in the camp. What he learns is that one man had seen a robe, some silver and some gold, wanted them and took them. Now, he was hiding them in his tent. That decision would end up costing him his life. We have to be very careful that the decisions we make aren’t us exchanging something small and temporary for the incredible eternal blessings that God has for us. When we disobey God, we are…

Begin Again, Day 15 Expect setbacks. Read Joshua, chapter 7. This pattern is so incredibly common, even today. We experience a tremendous victory from the Lord, and it seems like the very next thing that happens is some kind of massive defeat. Success is extremely hard to deal with. I recently heard famed football coach Nick Saban talk about this very fact. He was explaining that success tends to lead to a kind of relaxation, where you stop pushing as hard. The Israelites evaluated the next town they needed to conquer and didn’t feel like it was much of a threat. However, they failed to evaluate their own selves and…

Begin Again, Day 14 Know what not to begin again. Read Joshua. Chapter 6. As we conclude our study over this particular chapter. It’s a good time to be reminded about the dangers of beginning again. We should always be focused on beginning again and starting over when it comes to the things of God and our obedience to God. However, when God moves and tears down walls in our lives, we need to keep them torn down. We should not begin those things again. God destroyed something for a purpose, and he is the one who restores and remakes. But if he destroyed something we need to let it…

Begin Again, Day 13 The one condition. Read Joshua chapter 6. The people were preparing for the final day. They were gonna walk around the city of Jericho seven times and then shout. Joshua is giving them all the instructions they need to be able to carry out the completion of the victory that they have been assured. Joshua gives them this reminder that because God has given them this victory, they are going to give back to God everything from this city. The only things that will survive out of this city are the woman Rahab and her family for helping them. Everything and everyone else is either to…

Begin Again, Day 12 The obedience parade. Read Joshua chapter 6. Joshua had shared with the people the plan. They understood what God was asking them to do. Now, they just had to go and execute it. The people of Jericho were terrified and had barred the doors against the Israelites. But as God explained to Joshua and Joshua explained to the people, all they had to do was go out and walk around the city once a day for six days, and then on the 7th day, walk around the city seven times and shout. God was going to take care of the rest. Here, we see them doing…

Begin Again, Day 11 Strange and odd. Read Joshua chapter 6. The battle has started. The people of Israel are going to attack the city of Jericho. This incredible city is heavily fortified, and has been walled up and closed off since the people crossed over the Jordan river. There is no way through the wall or through the gates. Yet, that didn’t stop God. God gave the people of Israel some unusual directions. This is not a battle plan that anybody would have ever drawn up. And, I can’t imagine the planning meeting where Joshua would have communicated to the team what God had told him to do. That…