The book of Joshua opens with God’s people in a season of leadership transition from Moses to Joshua. From a season of knowing the promise God had set before them, to actually stepping into that promise. Yet they still found themselves facing a lot of unknowns and uncertainties because they had never been where God was calling them to go. And when you can’t always see what lies ahead, it’s easy to grow tired and discouraged. This is why over and over again when uncertainty and impossibility stood before the Israelites, God’s response in the midst of these obstacles remained the same: be strong and courageous. In the unknown God’s people looked for a battle plan, but God’s response to them was a battle cry. To acknowledge their present circumstances, and then to find their strength and courage not from what surrounded them, but from the presence of God among them. As a church, we are convinced now more than ever that this is the time to be strong and courageous toward whatever stands before us.
