Joshua 10 -- God Uses Even Our Mistakes

"When you make agreements with the enemy, expect to end up paying a price and having to defend them in order to protect yourself.  This is why God's people must remain separated from the world," my commentary said.

When five regional kings discovered that the large city of Gibeon had made peace with the invading Jews, they had to come together and attack, because a large barrier between them and Israel had been removed.  "The poor Gibeonites had made peace with the invaders and were now at war with their former allies ... God was using these events to accomplish His own purposes.  Instead of having to defeat these four city-states one by one, He would help Joshua conquer them all at one time!"

"The mistakes we make embarrass us, especially those mistakes that are caused by our running ahead of the Lord and not seeking His will.  But we need to remember that no mistake is final for the dedicated Christian.  God can use even our blunders to accomplish His purposes ... Whenever we believe the promises of God and obey the commands of God, we act by faith and can expect God's help."

In an amazing miracle, God assisted Israel by bringing a hailstorm to kill the enemy army.  Yes, it was a miracle, but my commentary said "an even greater miracle was the fact that the stones hit only the enemy soldiers ... When God's people are obeying God's will, everything in the universe works for them."

The last miracle recorded in Joshua resulted from Joshua's prayer for more time to finish the task.  We can be tempted to try to explain away the miracle of the sun standing still for an entire day, but we will likely make ourselves insane in the process.  God is not just God over the physical laws He created.  He is also outside of time, and our limited human understanding of things outside of time make it difficult for us to envision how God might even have crammed an extra day into a few seconds so that the sun appeared to remain motionless for a day!  It's not for us to understand by simply to believe.

"There's a word of encouragement here:  God can take even our blunders and turn them into blessings.  This isn't an excuse for carelessness, but it's a great encouragement when you've failed the Lord and His people."

Father, I pray that You will give me discernment to find Your will before I act, so that I won't make a mistake, but I also love Your care and provision for me when I do fail You, to use even my mistakes to further Your kingdom and to bless me!

Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford