Encouragement (Part 1): Week 1, Day 3

Congratulations, ladies!  You have made it to the third day of our study.  Your faithfulness to God and His Word is amazing!  I hope today's study will be beneficial to you. Today is our APPLICATION day.  This is when we can really grow in God, as we apply His Words to our lives.

Once again, read through Deuteronomy 31:7-8 & 23.

Review the commands that Moses gave to Joshua in verses 7-8.

1. Be strong and courageous
2. Do not fear or be dismayed

Joshua was getting ready to become the leader of a nation (think President of the United States, think boss of a major company, think leader of [fill in the blank]). I'm sure that Joshua was trembling inside because of the major responsibility that he was going to have.  Have you been in a leadership role where there was some fear and trepidation because all of the decisions were placed on you? That was Joshua.  Yet, in spite of this new role - which wasn't just the leader of a nation; it was also lead the people into the Promised Land that was already conquered by other people groups, and conquer it - Moses was telling Joshua to stay strong and don't be afraid.

Moses didn't just leave Joshua hanging.  He gave Joshua four good reasons why he could be strong.  Review the four things that you learned about God in our previous lesson.  Because of these things, Joshua had nothing to dread. Think about your current situation.  Are you in fear of something? Are you in a leadership role and have second guesses about it?  Just as the Lord was with Joshua, He is with you!

Look at those four things again:

1. He goes ahead of you.  The Lord knows what you are going to get into before you do because He is there before you are there.  He is Sovereign and already has your future planned out.
2. He will be with you.  Not only does He go in front of you and see what is going to happen to you, He is going to be right with you throughout every aspect of your life.  You have no reason to fear or panic about what is happening because God is right there with you.
3. He will not fail you.  There is no one on this earth that you can say this about.  People are human; we all have faults.  God is perfect; there is no fault in Him. He will not fail you, no matter what.
4. He will not forsake you. God will not give up on you.  He is right with you all the time, step by step, every day of your life. No matter what, God is there for you.

Look at verse 23 again.  Not only did Moses give this word of encouragement to Joshua, but God gave the same word to him!  Moses said, "the Lord will be with you."  God said, "I will be with you." Let's just pretend that Joshua didn't quite catch the message the first time (although I sincerely doubt this was the case).  God wanted to make sure that Joshua knew the truth.

The Lord God is with us, my sisters!  Do not ever forget it! No matter what you are facing, no matter what trial or tribulation, no matter what project is in front of you, no matter who is around you grumbling or complaining, God is always with us. That is a promise from Him, and the Lord never breaks His promises!

Be encouraged in this Word, and live your life daily knowing that God goes ahead of you, God will be with you, God will not fail you, and God will not forsake you.

To read the previous posts on Encouragement, click these links:

Week 1: Day 1, Day 2