Easter Sunday was a tide change event. Jesus’ death and resurrection forever changed our relationship with God. Part of the impact of it was also who’s relationship changed with God because of those events. Jesus’ ministry culminated in his death and resurrection, which was meant to be a gift and sacrifice to many people, and the hope of that message grounds us, and gives us both joy and hope even today.
There is not a Next Steps document for today.
Sometimes it feels like we are stuck in a rut, or even at a dead end. The people with Joshua had felt it several times before. At the edge of the Red Sea, when food ran low, when what direction to go was fuzzy. In each instance God moved, God worked, God did something in and around them to show and remind them of his faithfulness. What are our stories that we can look back on and remind one another about how we have seen God at work?
Grit, doing hard things, perseverance are words that I hear often. What about when it gets challenging, when the pressure is on and when emotions run high? Rahab models a faith in God, that believes who God will be today is connected to who God has been before. That while faith still is hard, we ground it in who we know God to be, and trust what he will do.
What does it look like to be strong? There are lots of images of strength we know from our families, books, and our world. As Joshua steps into a major leadership role, God charges him to be strong, and to live with courage. The passage also names and qualifies that the kind of strength that Joshua is being invited to is not one that comes from within him, but relies on God, and grounds itself in his word.