You’ve Got Your Downs and Ups
(Read Joshua 1)
One Christmas Eve, we were testing out a brand new sound system at our church. At the time, it was cutting edge. It was fully controllable by an iPad. The only problem is that the tablet hadn’t arrived yet. As the point person for the audio-visual, it meant that I had to control the soundboard and all the mics manually from a small room between the Sanctuary and the social hall. Since I couldn’t see what was going on during the service, I had to go back and forth to get my cues and put them into action.
Despite my sweat and angst, the service went off without a hitch. Afterwards, a friendly guy introduced himself and asked how he could help. He was a huge asset to our church and became a really good friend.
“Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”
Joshua 1:7-8
God told Joshua several times to be “strong and courageous.” God also assured him victories in battle and blessings in the promised land. How can God command us to be something that we’re not? Because our Lord always gives us what He commands. Joshua could be bold and courageous because God was with him at all times and in all places.
I caught up with my friend in a recent zoom meet, and I learned more about his faith journey. His first experience with God was in a Baptist church as a child. Both parents encouraged him to follow Jesus. Like a vintage Baptist, he stepped forward to do an altar call, publicly accepting Jesus Christ as his savior. This commitment had an interesting twist. “Guess where I was Baptized,” he asked me. “In the Ohio river.” How many people can say that?
He and his wife became friends with my wife and me. They became actively involved in serving at our church. He and I took turns doing sound and video for Sunday services so the other could worship with family. His wife stepped up with various roles in Christian education. He confided to us a few years after we first met that she was having some problems and was in pain.
“On the night after she was diagnosed with Ovarian cancer, I had a vivid dream,” my friend confided. “In my dream, there was this large welcoming and comforting hand over the belly/mid section of a person where the cancer was,” he added. Even though he could not distinguish his wife in the dream, they knew it was her and they knew it was God’s hand. He got teary-eyed as he explained the significance of his dream. “It was comforting. The dream was telling us that things would be ok because He would be with us. It gave such a deep sense of peace and God’s love.
How did you (and your wife) get through this, I asked. “I had been listening to a nationally known Pastor’s podcasts to help me fight my battles,” he responded. His sermons gave me energy and hope to get through each day.”
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Joshua 1:9
Many have long debated if God’s words to Joshua were meant solely for him or for all of us. As with most, not all, messages from God, I believe if it’s in the Bible, God is usually talking to us too.
Theologian John Piper wrote about this exact scenario in Joshua. “This promise is not limited to Joshua,” he wrote. The same words are used in Isaiah 41:10, “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed”. In 2 Corinthians, Piper tells us that, “in Jesus, all the promises of God are Yes.”
In my first year of junior high school, I was bullied by a few guys on a daily basis. They were two years ahead of me so I was relieved when they graduated and moved on. They knew my older brother and when I was with him, they left me alone. I could be bold and fearless when my brother was behind me. That’s the same principle when God is near. We can be strong and be courageous when we know that the Lord is with us wherever we go. Think about what that tells you about the command to be strong.
My friend’s wife wasn’t able to attend church when her health started to fail. “About two weeks before she passed, our Pastor came over to minister to her. To us.” My friend recalled, “She brought Communion and my wife said, ‘I didn’t realize how much I missed this.'”
In his ongoing faith, worship, and study of sermons, my friend learned firsthand there’s a plan to everything. When something like this happens, “It’s not the end, it’s never the end. God will be with us,” he said. He reflected further on his wife’s struggle and the changes to his life since her passing. “Since then, there are times when I step back, think of what happened, what we went through.” He continued, “I’m reminded that you’ve got your downs and ups.” Through it all God is holding our hands.
“For I am the LORD, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.”
Isaiah 41:13
Many years later, My friend is now retired and living in a large RV. He has two adult children and he’s soon going to be a grandparent. He’s in between churches right now, like many people since the Covid pandemic. “It is my hope that when Covid is gone, my girlfriend and I will find a church to worship and grow together in our faith.”
“You can never be too small for God to use — only too big.”
Warren Wiersbe
My friend’s wife didn’t grow up in a church environment. She was baptized as a baby but it was mainly her grandmother who was instrumental in her faith. In their marriage, especially when the kids arrived, his wife was the one who wanted to attend church regularly. My friend didn’t. He told me that, “She came to a more profound faith in her adult life. It grew.”
My friend’s faith grew as well. Like many who are indoctrinated in a strict church life early on, there is some pushback. Some Christian communities don’t allow questioning. He told me that by the time he was in college, he wasn’t actively involved with his faith. Two friends and I, invited this friend to a Bible study we were engaged in at the time. We were a little too full of our own opinions to be open to the needs of my church friend. In my ignorance, I was concerned that my friend was lost. That he wasn’t seeking God. Sometimes we need to shut up. Sometimes, we need to ask, observe, and listen. Not preach. He didn’t come back to another one.
Six months later, my wife and I moved away. My friend and I have remained friends. We stay in touch. We trade emails and texts. It wasn’t until our zoom meeting yesterday, that I got to see his happy and healthy self. It was so awesome to learn that his faith is and has been active all these years. It’s what has kept him going. It’s what has given him strength and courage.
Seeing how content and at peace my friend is now, filled me with joy. He was always the logical calm in my storms during our tech days in church together. He was the quiet and understated guy. He showed me so much about God’s grace. I’ve never seen anything but love and praise from him. He has had a huge impact on my faith life.
If we are believers and followers of Christ, we need to spread the Gospel. We should be aware of the impact we have on others and be aware of how our brothers and sisters impact us through life’s downs and ups.
But now, Lord, what do I look for?
My hope is in you.
Psalm 39:7
Key Applications:
- If you can’t read God’s word daily, try a podcast or devotional. The web is loaded with great resources. Finding this living water will help keep you connected to God’s will for you.
- Reach out to someone you haven’t seen or talked with lately. Even just to say hello. Communication creates positive energy in both sides. If nothing else, ask how you can pray for them.
- Spend this week listening. Pray for God’s wisdom. Pray for patience. Learn what fulfills others. Learn how you can love them more.
Where else in your life can you live out the teachings of Christ? Look for next week’s Devotion.