Monday, January 27: Joshua 23- A call to faithfulness.

As Joshua, now an old man, winds down his leadership of Israel, he issues a strong and clear call to continued faithfulness to the people of Israel.

Verses 6-8 capture the heart of Joshua’s call: Be very strong; be careful to obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or to the left. Do not associate with these nations that remain among you; do not invoke the names of their gods or swear by them. You must not serve them or bow down to them. But you are to hold fast to the LORD your God, as you have until now.

In my spirit I hear the Lord issuing a similar call to me, to us.

From time to time it is good to be called to continued faith and faithfulness. This morning is one of those mornings for me. It is as if Joshua’s words, modified for my 21^st century situations, spoke directly to me:

Be very strong; be careful to obey all that is written in the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, without turning aside to the right or to the left. Do not pick up the beliefs and lifestyles of non-Christ-followers in your community; do not invoke the names of their gods or swear by them. You must not serve the gods of this world. But you are to hold fast to the LORD your God, as you have until now.

Lord, I hear Your call. I open my heart to Your call. But I know that I cannot obey Your call on my own strength. Thanks be to You! You have given me, and all Christ-followers, the Holy Spirit. Grant me strength to listen to Your spirit and to obey His promptings and leadings.

I pray this in Jesus’ name, knowing this is the only way I can obey Your call. Amen.