Devotional Song: Go to this link … Please take the time to take in video of Kristyn Getty singing By Faith, … declaring the truth that we can follow our God to find the Holy City God promises for all who come to Him in faith …
Highlight Passage #1 Joshua 3: 14 [NKJV] …
14 So it was, when the people set out from their camp to cross over the Jordan, with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, …
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Highlight Context - Joshua 3: 9-17 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK … God’s people had to trust in God for them to cross over the Jordan and into the Promised Land.
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Reference Passage #1 - Joshua 1: 8-9 [NKJV] …
8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Reference Passage #1 - Proverbs 3: 5-6 [NKJV] …
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.
My Journal for Today: Today’s Our Daily Bread devotional entry, authored by Jennifer Benson Schuldt, relates a personal story to illustrate her New Year’s Eve devotional, a story which reminded me of my own family incident.
When our oldest daughter was about 5 years old she was learning to swim; and she wanted to show her mom and dad that she could jump off the high dive at the rec center where we went to swim as a family. I told her to get on the board and I would be in the pool below when she jumped into the water. When she got to the edge of the diving board, I could see the look of fear on her face; and I could imagine her thinking, “Can I trust Dad down there treading water; … and what will happen when I jump?” … But she did trust me; and she jumped from that 30 meter board; and I’ll never forget the smile on her face as she emerged from the water after jumping off.
So, today's ODB author, Schuldt, directs her readers (me) to the passage in Joshua, Chapter 3 where the fearful Israelites were being exhorted by Joshua, their new leader after Moses had died, to cross over and head into the “Promised Land,” as God was directing His people. But remember all those fears the people had from the report of the spies that the Canaanites, who lived across the Jordan, were like monsters. Like my daughter at the edge of that diving board, God’s people were asking themselves, “Can we trust God and our new leader, Joshua?” But as we see in the highlight passage linked above and the attached photos, the people, led by their Priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant, stepped into the Jordan; and history tells us that the waters parted much as they had when God’s people were led by Moses across the Red Sea to escape the Egyptians 40 years earlier.
It’s a new year ahead; but today’s devotional begs the question, “Are we willing to cross the Jordan of our fears and trust God to lead us into HIS purposes and HIS promises?” … Will we trust our God to lead us as HE did Joshua; or will we let our fears paralyze us to keep us from crossing over our 2014 Jordan and move into the promised land of 2015?
Our choice; … but personally I choose to jump off the board with God waiting for me in the waters of fear. I choose to step into Jordan of tomorrow morning and be here crossing into God’s promised land of my future. And I know that just as God promised Joshua in Joshua 1: 8-9, if I step out in faith, following God’s word and seeking His will, being obedient to His ways, my God will lead me to HIS promised land into this New Year.
My Prayer for Today … Lord, … I will cross the Jordan of my fears and following You into Your promised land. Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled Our Daily Bread, distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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