You are Not Alone
...As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you.
Joshua 1:5
Joshua was charged with bringing God's people into the promise land after his predecessor Moses and all the Generation before them had passed. Joshua was with Moses during the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, he was with Moses through battles and triumphs, through failures and progress. However, he wasn't in the position Moses was in as the leader. But now, it was Joshua's turn to lead the people of God, I can't imagine the stress he must have felt. One thing about Joshua, he had courage, but somewhere along the way, God had to remind him that He was with Joshua. I am not sure what season you are in, but if it is anything like mine, I can feel the onset of "The Stretch". "The Stretch" is that place where you feel God is pushing you to the next level of your faith. the level where you cease to look to your own strength and reason and are forced to trust in a power that is greater than your own ability or reason.
This season of life will either increase your confidence in God or cause you to breakdown and coward under the weight of what God is trying to do in your life. The thing is, God is not going to put anything on you that you cannot handle - in Him. If He brought you this far, keep trusting Him to supply what you need for the next level in your life, no matter what obstacles may lay ahead. He says in Joshua, I will not fail you or forsake you! When you can't call on your mentor anymore, when you aren't surrounded by a security blanket of capable, wisdom-filled people, can you trust God to give you direction? I get it - your doubt in your ability to lead others, your creativity, your gifts all come to mind when we are putting ourselves out there as servants, but God will give the increase where you need it. To be transparent, I can play a good game of the strong and courageous leader and inspirational speaker, but there are times when I just cannot understand for the life of me why God put me in this line of Kingdom work. But, here's a verse that always brings me back to my holy-senses. I am using the Message version just for a little "urban" perspective:
1 Corinthians 1:26-31 The Message (MSG)
26-31 Take a good look, friends, at who you were when you got called into this life. I don’t see many of “the brightest and the best” among you, not many influential, not many from high-society families. Isn’t it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses, chose these “nobodies” to expose the hollow pretensions of the “somebodies”? That makes it quite clear that none of you can get by with blowing your own horn before God. Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ. That’s why we have the saying, “If you’re going to blow a horn, blow a trumpet for God.”
Yep, this verse reminds me of the way God works and it is no where near what my little ole mind thinks. So when God says, "I am going to use you", have confidence that you are the perfect person for the job (I think I have just put myself in my place), this word is for you too...ha!
So all of you "nobodies", go out there and change the world, because God has your back, He will not fail you, and He will not leave you alone to do what only He can do through you!
Blessings,
Novica Olinger
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