“Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. (Joshua 1:2)
Undertaking any type of project always requires a great deal of courage, effort and, above all, luck.
If, for example, you are going to start a business project, you should conduct a market study.
If this is positive, you then perform what is known as a feasibility analysis.
And with it under your arm you go out to contact the entities or people you are going to need and to look for the financing.
And if you manage to convince everyone, you start your business.
During all this time many private and public entities will give you advice, training and support, and you will have the guidance of experts.
But you know what. Despite all this, only 1 in 10 businesses reaches 3 years of survival, and only 1 in 20 makes it to 5 years.
The rest fall by the wayside, and in some cases with heavy losses.
That is why, when God calls us to his service, whether full-time or part-time, we tremble.
If what happens in the natural world is so complex and so many good professionals fail, how is it possible that poor sinners can lead others to Christ and be examples of wisdom, humility and love?
And the truth is that they are right. It is impossible for an imperfect being to be a model of perfection for others, were it not for something we forget.
In the business world, your preparation, your aptitude for business and, above all, luck have a great influence. In Spanish we say that it is better to show up at the right time than to be hanging around for 100 years.
But in the Kingdom of Heaven none of this is true.
Obviously, it is necessary that we prepare ourselves in those matters to which God calls us, but success will not come from this, but from the power of God working through your obedience and dedication in the work that He has entrusted to you.
In the first nine verses of the first chapter of the book of Joshua we find God giving him concrete instructions regarding his objective: to conquer the Promised Land.
God entrusted him with the task of leading the people in the conquest of a strongly defended territory with walled cities and professional armies.
It is therefore normal that Joshua did not feel qualified.
Thus, of those 9 verses in chapter 1, in the first we find an introduction, in the second the description of the task by God, and in the next seven what we see is God convincing Joshua that the task is going to be possible.
Get ready
But the most important is found in verse 2:
“Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites.
(Joshua 1:2)
And this is what we often forget when God calls us to His service: that it is He who calls us.
Of course God knows that we are perfectly useless, either to live a life of holiness or to be of help and example to others.
But He does not expect us to be capable of it. What God expects is that we allow Him to work through our lives.
And that is what he calls us for.
And so, he asked Joshua something impossible: get up and pass over this Jordan.
He no longer had Moses to open the waters. Moses was no longer there to raise his arms and win the victory.
For God’s objective was to show him that someone far more powerful than Moses was with him: God Himself.
That is why God often calls us and gives us impossible goals. Because He wants us to live clinging to Him.
For when you submit yourself to God and give yourself in simplicity to him, when you abandon your arrogance and your sufficiency, and are filled with his presence and his love, then it is his power that works, it is his wisdom that speaks, and it is his mercy that loves.
It will not be you who convinces of sin or comforts, it will be the Holy Spirit operating through you.
Therefore, do not be afraid when God calls you and tells you to get ready to cross your own Jordan, because wherever He takes you, God will be with you.
God bless you.
Photo by Jeremy Bezanger on Unsplash
