Trust the LORD

October 16th, 2024
by Kevin Darnell

As we continue our journey through the book of Joshua, we come upon chapter 10 and a great battle that takes place. The neighboring kings around Gibeon have attacked the Gibeonites because they have entered into a covenant with Israel. The Gibeonites sent a message to Joshua asking for help. The LORD reassures Joshua that he will be victorious by saying, “Do not fear them, for I have given them into your hands. Not a man of them shall stand before you.” So Joshua trusted in God’s faithfulness and gathered his men and marched overnight to Gibeon.

This entire chapter demonstrates the faithfulness of God. As Michael Jordan pointed out this past Sunday, God’s faithfulness is consistent, contagious, and conclusive.
God is so very faithful to each one of us. Why is it, then, that we have such a hard time trusting Him?

I want to tell you a simple story. On the day of a big game, a young man was trying to paint a large room in his house. He had been promising to get the room painted for some time but his job’s workload had prevented him from getting to it. The only time that he found that he would have was on a particular Saturday when a big game between his favorite team and its fierce rival were playing. Thinking that he could finish the room in time to watch the big game, he started his project.

As he painted foot after foot of the walls, he began to realize that this project was going to take much more time than he counted on. He began to become discouraged. When his wife came into the room, she commented how pretty the room had already begun to look. But her words were of little comfort to her husband. As she stood there she began to realize that this was the day of the game that he had been talking about for weeks and that there was no way for him to finish in time. So she grabbed a paintbrush and began to paint. With the two of them working together, the room was finished in time for the big game. The husband was very grateful to his wife and the two settled in for the evening and watched an exciting game together.

That is a great story, but what does that have to do with Joshua and God’s faithfulness? During the battle in Joshua 10, God threw the enemy into a panic and Joshua had them on the run. Then God caused a hailstorm to rain down upon Joshua’s enemy and killed them. Scripture records that “There were more who died because of the hailstones than the sons of Israel killed with the sword.”(Joshua 10:11(b)).

Through this simple act, God is telling us, “I can do more in a storm than you can on your own. Trust me.”

How many times have we tried to accomplish things on our own when God wants to accomplish it through us supernaturally? Why do we find it so hard to simply trust God? God’s faithfulness is His way of saying to you, “Trust Me.” God can do far more with you than you can on your own.

These are your Words for Wednesday.

This coming Sunday evening from 4:00-6:00, we are helping the Ballentine PTA with their Fall Festival. If you would like to volunteer, please reach out to JT at jtbubba@aol.com and let him know. Have a great rest of your week!

In Christ,
Kevin