Let me pray about that….

To some the phrase “let me pray about that” may seem to be a way to postpone a decision. Many troubles have come because people have NOT prayed about things to ask God for His guidance. How many difficult places are because we did not ask counsel of God?

In Joshua chapter 9 we can see an example of what can happen when we don’t ask God for His direction. The men of Gibeon, which was a mere three days journey from where the Children of Israel were camped, came as if they had traveled from a long way off. Joshua and the princes (overseers) of the congregation listened to their story and accepted what the men of Gibeon said without question. In Joshua 9:14 the scripture specifically states they did not ask counsel of God. The treaty made with Gibeon caused the Children of Israel to be in a tough predicament. The commandment from the Lord was to kill all the inhabitants of the land.  Another commandment given to them was not to break a vow that was made. One commandment was going to be broken.  Either they would have to not kill ALL the inhabitants or they would have to break the vow they made with Gibeon.

How many times do we put ourselves in a similar situation because we fail to ask counsel of God? No decision is too small to ask God to give us guidance. I’ve prayed about which car to buy and when I felt uneasy about purchasing a particular vehicle I didn’t buy it only to find out later the person who did buy it spent a few thousand fixing it. I prayed about where I should call home when the time came to move and God opened doors I would never have dreamed when I followed His leading.

Don’t let the phrase “let me pray about that” be just a way to put off making a decision. Really pray about decisions and watch as God leads you higher and deeper in Him!

Crossing Jordan

When the Children of Israel crossed the Jordan River, the descendants of the people who crossed the Red Sea experienced the same miracle. The waters were rolled back and they walked through the midst on dry ground. God removed the obstacle of the water out of the way. He paved them a path to cross over; however, when they got to the other side, they had to fight to take over the land. God chose not to remove the inhabitants of the land.

In reading the crossing of the Jordan in the book of Joshua, I thought about various doors I have watched God open. We sometimes think when we go through a door then face opposition that maybe we should not have gone through that door. We begin to question if maybe we pushed too hard to get through the door or if we begged God too much to open it. From reading Joshua, just because we face opposition after walking through that open door, it does not mean we took a wrong turn somewhere. First of all, God allows the battles to help strengthen us. If we could understand that the battles come to make us strong but it’s up to us to continue fighting, we might look at our trials in a different manner. It’s being able to trust God in spite of circumstances that proves our faith. True faith is continuing to trust and believe even when the outcome is not what we want.

The Children of Israel won their first battle after crossing the Jordan River but lost the second battle. Had God changed? No! The sin of one member of one tribe of the Children of Israel affected the entire congregation. You think your sin affects no one but yourself? That’s what Achan thought and look what happened. Achan’s disregard for instruction from the man of God regarding the first battle cost 36 men their lives in the second battle. All for 1 garment, 200 shekels of silver  (about 76.1 ounces) and gold weighing 50 shekels (about 19 ounces). The silver and gold at today’s prices would total about $32,511.90. Achan was willing to take a chance that Joshua was not following the plan of God for a little more than $32,500. He was willing to risk harm to his family as well as other members of the congregation.

Apostolic Lighthouse Pentecostal Church of Nacogdoches has crossed a Jordan River where God rolled back the rivers to allow us to cross. We must not let our desire for things of the world cause our entire family to be destroyed as in the incident with Achan.  He didn’t really take much. A few articles of clothing and a little money. The problem was God had already instructed the entire congregation of people that they were not to take of the spoil from Jericho. God used the man of God Joshua to give this instruction. Maybe Achan thought Joshua didn’t really hear from God. Maybe he thought God didn’t really mean it the way Joshua said. Maybe Achan didn’t trust Joshua because of some past experience. We don’t know what thoughts might have been in the mind of Achan. What we do know is Joshua had evidently delivered the message just the way God intended and Achan’s disobedience cost him not only his own life but cost his family their lives.

Having crossed over Jordan, I want to be more diligent to be obedient to the man of God. Yes, he is just as human as I am but God has chosen to use him to shepherd the flock I am part of. I don’t want my sin to be the cause of losing any battle we will face as a congregation.