A Door of Hope
Suddenly. Out of nowhere. Knocked down. Flat on your face. Left scratching your head with great perplexion, “What is going on here? Why this? And why now?”
Life can be full of surprises. For it has an uncanny way of sucking the strength right out you and leaving you with more questions than you have answers for. In Joshua chapter 7, we see Joshua was prostrate on the ground disheartened and on the fringe of despair.
When God sternly spoke to Joshua, “ What are you doing? And why are you laying on your face? “Get up!” Today’s translation would read, “You can be pitiful or powerful, but you cannot be both!”
Joshua had been rocking and rolling all over his enemies. Powerfully plowing through every road block when suddenly there was a disasterous turn of events. Have you ever found yourself on a winning streak when unexpectedly all hell breaks loose leaving you reeling?
Now God’s people were overwhelmed and retreating from their enemies like a dog with its tail between its legs. God had instructed Joshua to lead His people into their Promise Land. The promise land is so much more than provision, prosperity and even peace. Since your promise land is your purpose, you can’t put a price tag on destiny.
The enemy is without. But the greatest enemy is the one within. With God on your side, there is absolutely nothing that can stop you… but you.
Jesus gave us a spiritual success tip in John 14:30, “Satan has no power over me nor anything he can use against me.” Because he fully understood that a curse cannot come and remain without a cause and spiritual legal grounds to do so.
In times of defeat, then self awareness and a spiritual excavation is what is essential. Digging in without digging up and beating yourself up. The internal brings forth the external, listen closesly to what your mouth is saying. For it is the inward parts that produce evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, and slander thereby then expressed through the outward parts. It’s what you don’t know that can get you into trouble. The importance of thinking about what you are thinking about.
Achan brought trouble upon all of his family and even his nation was profoundly affected.
Adverse circumstances can result in a divine disconnect all because of those you are aligned to, as was in the case of Achan.
God spoke to Joshua, “It’s hidden among you. That is the reason your enemy is destroying you. Until you remove the things that should be destroyed, you will never defeat your enemies.”
What evil covenant or agreement has been forged between you and something else besides God? Idols can be stuff. Idols can be people. Idols can be self. Self-ishness. Self-will and stubborness. Self promotion. Inordinate self preservation. Unbalanced self love. Self-ies! Unfortunately, you can creatively make an idol out of just about anything! Be so careful who you bring into your life. Also very careful not to bring an accursed thing into your homes or businesses and churches.
So if you find yourself in a time of defeat or retreat, possibly it is time for a self evaluation and a spiritual exacavation. Is there something hidden within or among you?
It can be as simple as burying the pain of your past, resulting in a root of bitterness. Maybe it’s habits or addictions that are nicely packaged as “issues”, intending but yet procrastinating to confront and change one’s self.
Achan’s unresolved issues and character flaws brought death to his inner circle. “Yep, I own it. A little late I know. But I take full responsibility for what I have done. When I saw this beautiful robe, along with two hundred shekels of silver and a bar of gold I wanted them so much that I just had to have them. Lust of the eyes and the pride of life. A little self-indulgence never hurt anyone, you know.”
Some enlightening lessons we can learn from the example of Achan:
- What he “beheld” became
- What he “strongly desired”
- That he “took” irregardless
- And then he hid and packaged his wrong doing into a nice little box labeled “entitlement”.
- Achan believed that the God who created the eyes must not have seen a thing!
Deception always begets more deception.
I recall a visitation from God, suddenly and unexpectedly one day in 2017. Crystal clear I
heard these words, “Life as it has been has ceased to be, and will never be as it has been, ever again.”
Accompanied with a strong sensing of a shift in the spiritual realm. I pondered if that shift was
precursor to tribulating days. Now here we are in July 2020 and the daily headlines scream, that we have
entered “The New Normal”.
For everyone that has some stuff buried and requires some unpacking, repentance and realignment,
possibly now may be a good time to unpack some stuff?
It’s sobering how truth has a way of catching up to lies. And it’s beautiful the way that mercy has its way
of triumphing over judgment as we find in Hosea 2:15. In the book of Joshua we see that Achan’s
consequences caught up with his choices. He along with all of his family members were stoned to death
in the Valley of Achor.
But in Hosea God reassures his people, “I will turn the Valley of Trouble into an Opportunity
of Hope. Spiritual realignment brings restoration and opens a Door of Hope
for your future. Troubles are then reversed and replaced with blessings and mercy.