General Stuff

The life God blesses

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Our family has walked quite a few canyon paths over the last week, and each time I’ve thought about another verse from the book of Joshua.

Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go. (Joshua‬ ‭1:7‬ ‭NASB‬‬, emphasis mine)

Those who know me will find this an appropriate verse because heights can do a number on me, so naturally I would need to be strong and very courageous! But the Lord highlighted something else in the verse that I couldn’t shake as I walked the narrow paths up and down the mountains and canyons.

Be careful.

In the Hebrew, it means to keep, watch, and guard. It carries an implication that there is something valuable that needs to be preserved and protected. In my case, it was my life, and so I consistently walked on the inside part of the path!

But God’s command to be careful wasn’t about personal safety, but rather about personal obedience. He told Joshua to be careful “to do” all that he’d learned from Moses. That’s what would enable him to live a life that God could bless.

We want the blessings before the obedience, and yet God isn’t going to dump a bunch of blessings into the lap of someone whose life is full of disobedience. Just like I walked the path in such a way that showed a value for my life, God wants us to live in such a way that shows a value for His truth. Obedience does that.

Obedience says, “I hear You and I trust You. I may not understand it all, but because I know You, I’m going to protect and guard Your word by doing it all.”

The life that honors the authority of God and His Word is the life that God will bless. That is the life that will “have success wherever you go.”

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June 16, 2021by Paul Jenkins
Written by Paul Jenkins
Paul Jenkins is lead pastor of The Gathering, a community church located in beautiful downtown Albemarle, North Carolina. He's the author of God is My Air Traffic Controller and My Name's Not Lou. Paul is passionate about his wife, his 3 children, running, reading, coaching, leading people who are following Jesus, Swedish Fish and the Carolina Panthers.