A Courageous Leader

Joshua was a great and spirited leader of the Hebrew people.  He is an excellent example of our L2L Theme for this year, Strong and Courageous. 

This mighty man took over as the Israelite leader when Moses died.  It is estimated that Joshua was about 82 or 83 years old when God's people entered the Promised Land. 

Many difficult tasks and impossible events happened in overtaking the Promised Land under Joshua's leadership.  The spies thought it was impossible to gain the land, all except for Joshua and Caleb.  There were many obstacles to be overcome. 

The name Joshua actually means "Jehovah is Salvation."  Joshua always gave all glory to God as the Deliverer of his people.  The Bible says that the Israelites continued to serve Jehovah all the days of Joshua (Numbers 27:8, and 32:12).  This says something very positive about Joshua's leadership style and success.

Source:  Freebibleimages.org

I am certain that Joshua was incredibly brave, and well-built physically.  The strength and courage of this man are clear in the writings of scripture.  He had been a very close friend of Moses throughout the time before entry into Canaan.  He wandered in the wilderness with the Hebrews.  He ministered to Moses from his "young manhood on (Numbers 11:28 Exodus 24:13 and Exodus 33:11).  

Source:  The Children's Bible Story

Joshua had proven to be a qualified military leader. He was captain of the armies of Israel in the defeat of the Amalekites (Exodus 17).  He was a fearless army commander and was chosen as a younger man to represent the tribe of Ephraim when one man was chosen from each tribe for the mission of spying out Canaan.  

Source:  The Children's Bible Story

When Moses died, Joshua lost a great friend and leader.  God planned to use Joshua to do many impossible things in the following years.  The Lord knew that Joshua needed comfort and strong faith, so God told him over and over again to be strong and of good courage.  Joshua was aware of the tremendous power of Jehovah.

Source: The Children's Bible Story

The book of Joshua covers about 20 years, from the entry into the Promised land until around 1450 B.C., perhaps the year Joshua died.  I loved reading and re-reading this Old Testament book this past year to study for the L2L Bible Bowl Competition.  Joshua's role as a courageous and strong leader during the conquest of the new land was unique and interesting.

I discovered that the name Joshua, in Hebrew, is Yehoh-shu'a.  It is the equivalent name of Jesus.  The book of Joshua in the Septuagint is called I-e-sous' (the Greek equivalent of Yehoh-shu'a), and from this name, the name Jesus has been said to be derived.  

Source:  Heartlight Ministries

Joshua displayed all of the wonderful qualities of a fine leader... courage, obedience, and integrity.  

We can all learn something by studying this man's life. It is a fascinating and inspiring testament to a life of a servant leader. 

Change for Good

  Do you want to change your world for good?  Change yourself for God!

But how, you ask? I know that in the morning, I start out wanting to be good, obedient, strong, and faithful. But as the day goes on, I get lazy, tired, and distracted.

My friends at Convention in 2016

How to stay to my goal of obedience? How to change and walk the straight and narrow for good?

I just read a story about a girl who decided to do some tough things, and it changed her whole life.  The story of Ruth in the Bible helped me realize that I can be a part of something much bigger and better than myself, like Ruth.

She was a humble servant of God, and she chose to obey and serve, rather than take the easy way out.

She said to her mother-in-law in Ruth 3:5, “All that you say to me, I will do.”  Naomi was telling her to do some pretty strange things, like lay at a stranger's feet at night and put his coat over her. Ruth was strong, and she courageously did as she was asked.

My best friends pose as I snap a photo for Competion
Ruth, Boaz, and Baby Obed

And Ruth was used by God to be the grandmother of the King of Israel!

Like Ruth, we can change the world by being selfless workers for the Lord.  

Jesus told us in John 12 verse 26, “If anyone serves Me, let him follow me, where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, My Father will honor him.” 

In our activities this year, my youth group set a goal to serve others while we had fun together.  We did things like make a garden for the Alzheimer's Unit in our local nursing home, serve children at Christmastime in Toys for Tots, and have a special dinner for the elders at our church. 

The girls at L2L Meeting practicing speech

Through serving, we learned how God can use us for His good, and actually changed a few people’s worlds for the better?

What can you do to change your world for Jesus?