Reading With the People of God #7 CommitmentSample

Memorization Challenge:

6 Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them. 7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. 8 Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. (Joshua 1:6-8 NLT)

Reading Primer: Teachable...

Our hope and faith are IN God! There are so many reasons to describe God as wonderful, reasons to praise Him with unlimited praise! Not just when we feel like it or get what we think we are owed or deserve. Our great God invites us into His divine abode! Into His unending love! Come, see, and taste and tell of God’s goodness; to all, tell of His care and compassion.

Our God will never leave us; He will lead us onward through all time into the glory of His eternity. Do you believe this with just your words? Or is this truth written deep into the walls of your heart? Struggling to know?? Ask God to search your heart and remove anything that hinders your connection to Him…AND mean it. Ask God to give you the wisdom to know when He is convicting you to let go of something He either never intended for you to have or something that has served its purpose according to His will for you. He fights our battles. He orders our steps. He wants your trust and devotion. He wants your obedience.

We are in the last days, and God’s infinite goodness has given us specific warnings about what we will witness and experience as His children. Do you perhaps believe that you can avoid trials, heartache, and/or persecution by living a checklist-inspired “good Christian” lifestyle?

These questions are not meant to shame, condemn, defeat, or hold you down. They’re to encourage and remind you that we will never “arrive” (there are no ‘Ahh, finally made it' moments) on this side of heaven. The Christian life is not about coasting on good feelings to the finish line. There will always be something to receive from scripture to teach, correct, train, and equip you for the assignments God has specifically designed for you. When we truly pray, “Lord, I want what You want for me, even if that means letting go of something I think I can't live without,” we invite Him into His rightful place within our lives…the driver’s seat. We position ourselves to be teachable, to be humbled before the Lord.

- Ardena Hamill, Celebrate Recovery, Encourager