Strong And Courageous: Leadership Lessons From The Book Of JoshuaSmakprov

A leader must always be willing to take action first. In Joshua 3, the Lord tells Joshua His plan for helping the Israelites escape from their enemies. It required them to walk out into the Jordan River in faith, believing God would separate the river and allow them to walk through on dry ground. God clearly told Joshua to send twelve priests, one leader from each of the twelve tribes of Israel, to hold the Ark of the Covenant and step out into the Jordan River first.

I try to picture being one of those twelve leaders who had to go first. I’m sure I’d be praying that Joshua really had heard from God and knew what he was talking about. Otherwise, I’d be a fool for heading out on foot into unknown waters carrying a weighty object!

The greatness of the story is that things happened just as God told Joshua. But it required the leaders to obey first.

God might ask you to do something as a leader that just doesn’t seem logical. In our company, we follow a philosophy that says, “We will make the best business decision possible unless God tells us to do something different.”

In most day-to-day decisions, we make the best business decision possible. But now and then, God tells us to do something unexpected and different from conventional business practice. When you find yourself in one of those times, consider the following:

• Study God’s Word so you can test whether it’s God’s direction or your own.
• Have trusted, wise friends you can go to for prayer and counsel. Pick these people carefully. Make sure they have your best interest at heart as well as a desire to obey God.
• Ask yourself, “Am I willing to go first? Will I do what God is asking me to do before I ask anyone else to do it?”

If all those things are in place, you can rest confidently in obeying the direction of the Holy Spirit, even if it’s not a business decision based purely on human logic. God never said it would be easy, that’s one reason He says, “Be strong and courageous.” God always knows best, and like the perfect leader that He is, He will go before you. He will prepare the way ahead so that as you lead others, your path is ready.

What is God asking you to do?