Devotion with Diane

“Then Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel and for their heads and their judges and their officers; and they presented themselves before God. Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘From ancient times your fathers lived beyond the River, namely, Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, and they served other gods. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River, and led him through all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his descendants and gave him Isaac. To Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau, and to Esau I gave Mount Seir to possess it; but Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt. Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt by what I did in its midst; and afterward I brought you out. I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and you came to the sea; and Egypt pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. But when they cried out to the Lord, He put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them and covered them; and your own eyes saw what I did in Egypt. And you lived in the wilderness for a long time. Then I brought you into the land of the Amorites who lived beyond the Jordan, and they fought with you; and I gave them into your hand, and you took possession of their land when I destroyed them before you. Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel, and he sent and summoned Balaam the son of Beor to curse you. But I was not willing to listen to Balaam. So he had to bless you, and I delivered you from his hand. You crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho; and the citizens of Jericho fought against you, and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Girgashite, the Hivite and the Jebusite. Thus I gave them into your hand. Then I sent the hornet before you and it drove out the two kings of the Amorites from before you, but not by your sword or your bow. I gave you a land on which you had not labored, and cities which you had not built, and you have lived in them; you are eating of vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant.’ “Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”” Joshua‬ ‭24‬:‭1‬-‭15‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

Sometimes it is important to take inventory of all that God has done for us. It is good to remember what He brought us from. It is good to look and see that He is good, and He has kept His promises, and He has done exactly what He said He would do. When we remember, then we have a choice to make. Will we serve God or not? 

The Lord brought me from turmoil. I was raised with much heartache. I was abused. I saw no value in myself whatsoever. I was raised believing there was something so terribly wrong with me. I was even told that I should never have children because there would be something wrong with my children if I did. This was not told to me by a medical doctor. It was told to me by those who raised me. They truly believed that I would be like my mother. They believed there was no way that I could turn out right, and neither could my children. This lie was planted by Satan and was firmly rooted at every turn. I was told I was dumb. Satan told me many lies. 

Because of the abuse, the neglect, and the abandonment, I believed every lie that Satan threw at me. Then came the point of total rebellion. I wanted to have a different life. I didn’t know how to make it happen. And so I rebelled. I began seeking for whatever would fill the empty vats in my life. I had deep wells that needed filled. I tried various things, but nothing would satisfy. 

Then, I met Jesus. Jesus came to me, and He offered living water. I had never experienced anything like Him before. He not only took me from my old life, He gave me Himself. He gave me love. How and why would I ever return to what was before? I was only 17 years old, but I knew enough to know I would never go back. Love entered into my heart. 
Do the old lies return? Oh yes. Sometimes it is a daily battle to believe the truth. However, the Lord picked me, He chose me, He placed His love in me, and my answer is “I will serve the Lord”. 

The choice was made 46 years ago. However, do I need to be reminded of the truth? Absolutely. When I feel inadequate, when I feel rejected, when I feel like I can’t continue, when I feel like I can’t put one more foot in front of the other, when I feel insecure, I need the reminders that God is with me, He is for me, and He has brought me into a good land. 

There were three bodies of water that were mentioned in this passage. 

The Euphrates was about Abraham leaving what was behind. Ur was the happening place. It was the center of civilization. It was also the place of the worship of false gods. Abraham left the idols behind.

The Red Sea was the place that divided Egypt from the wilderness. Israel was to cross. Egypt was the happening place. It was also the place where other gods were worshipped. Israel left and crossed the Red Sea.

Then there was the Jordan. Israel was to cross this place to enter into God’s promised land. However, they were to cross into a land that was filled with the worship of other gods and remove them from the land. 

All of these rivers speak of a separation. What would the people choose? What do we choose? When you look at your history, what do you choose? You can enter the land and still have gods among you. Will you choose to remove them? 

Choose you this day who you will serve. How much of your history needs to happen before you will serve Him?

It says, “We will serve”. It is a family thing. Whom you serve will affect your family. 

Who will we serve when we don’t know where we are going, as Abraham didn’t know where he was going? Who will we serve in the wilderness, when times get tough, as it was for Israel in the wilderness? 

Who will we serve in the good land, when we have all that we need? Will we look to other gods to satisfy us or will we serve the Lord?