DCLM Daily Manna 31 July 2023 Devotional By Pastor W. F. Kumuyi — The Courage To Cross Over
TOPIC: The Courage To Cross Over (DCLM Daily Manna 31 July 2023)
KEY VERSE: “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest” (Joshua 1:9).
TEXT: Joshua 1:1-9 (KJV)
1 Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord it came to pass, that the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying,
2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.
3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.
4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.
5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
6 Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.
7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest.
8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
9 Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
MESSAGE:
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on 18th June 1815 between Napoleon’s French Army and a coalition led by the Duke of Wellington and Marshal Blücher. It was a decisive battle of its age, which concluded a war that had raged for about 23 years. It was at Waterloo in Belgium, where Napoleon Bonaparte suffered defeat at the hands of the Duke of Wellington, ending the Napoleonic era of European domination.
Joshua also had a challenging task of taking Israel to the Promised Land. Before now, he had gone to wars at the instance of Moses’ commands. They had crossed the Red Sea by the stretching of Moses Rod, but here was a Jordan to cross, and the wall of Jericho to pull down. Moses was now dead, and there was no rod to stretch. What could Joshua do? God reminded him that Moses was only a servant but He, the Almighty is the Master. He was changing the perspectives of Joshua who had always seen God through the lenses of Moses. Joshua needed a personal walk with the same God who carried Moses and all Israel through to that point.
For every challenge that stared Joshua and the Israelites in the face, God had a strategy to handle it. The solutions to all the complex challenges Joshua saw Moses handle while learning under him were neither in his mentor nor the rod he wielded. God revealed that the solution was in the Word.
God does not often call His champions to cross over familiar streams. It is the key of obedience to the word of God that opens up new path and builds the needed courage in faithful adherents to cross over.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Courage and absolute confidence in His word will drive away fear and grant us victory.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1 Timothy 1-6
Deeper Life Daily Manna was written by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
