NAVAGATING AN UNFAMILIAR-UNKNOWN JOURNEY - Thoughts from Joshua 3

Transition…Ever been there? The past 18+ months…that’s been the descriptive word for most…and remains so for me. I taught on it recently using some ideas from another blog I wrote. The response was such that I thought maybe it’s time to revisit the subject. So…here’s a first ever rerun…with a few edits.

NAVIGATING AN UNFAMILIAR-UNKNOWN JOURNEY

Thoughts from Josh 3:1-5

Have you ever had an idea…a dream...the pursuit of which meant an unfamiliar journey and made you ask, “Okay…how do I get from here to there?”

What do you do…how do we keep from hurting or destroying ourselves or others when faced with a “never-done-it-that-way” adventure?

How do we navigate an unknown journey?

What got me thinking about this was a phrase from Joshua.

Then Joshua rose early in the morning; and he and all Israel set out and came to the Jordan, and they lodged there before they crossed. At the end of three days the officers went through the camp; and commanded the people, saying, “When you see the Ark of the Covenant with the Levitical priests carrying it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. However, there shall be between you and it a distance of about ½ mile. Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you shall go, for you have not passed this way before.” Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you.” (3:1-5)

I find 5 points for navigating an unfamiliar journey.

The Wisdom of the Wary. Frequently…when we face the unfamiliar-unknown we look for similarities with past experiences. There were similarities for Joshua here.

There was an earlier account from spies. Moses had sent out spies before...Numbers 13-14. After that experience Joshua could have easily thought, "No thank you. Not going through that again." If so he would have missed hearing, "God has given the whole country to us. All the people…have melted away before us.” (2:24)

They had faced a strong enemy in a fortified city before. Moses, Joshua and Israel fought and defeated other kings and kingdoms, and captured fortified cities throughout the Exodus.

They had faced what appeared to be an insurmountable, uncrossable body of water before. Red Sea before and now the Jordon River at or above flood stage…1 mile wide and 150 feet deep.

In 3:5 Joshua says “...tomorrow the Lord will do wonders (miracles) among you.” Big deal...from the plagues to the Red Sea to 40 years of manna, these people had experienced miracles and wonders every day.

When navigating the unfamiliar-unknown, the principles from earlier experiences are useful and even necessary, but there is a great temptation to fall into the tyranny of the familiar…into the “that’s the way we always do it.” That’s dangerous on several levels but perhaps most dangerous is that it is a subtle form of self-reliance that pulls us from the critical God-reliance we must have to successfully walk through an unfamiliar-unknown.

Wait – Get the scene here…They were about to step into the end of a 40 year delay.

Think of it – centuries before the promise of a home of their own…the Promised Land…was given. Forty years earlier Moses received the call to “bring My people…out of Egypt” and they were freed for what they thought would be a two-week-trek home. Then the 10-spy-majority-report…disbelief… disobedience…rebellion…and a 14 day trip became a 14,000 day wilderness-wandering.

Now, at last, they were ready…the enemy was demoralized, the land was close…the natural reaction…Let’s go! March to the river’s edge and…CAMP? What? Wait a minute? Shouldn’t we be entering? He who hesitates is lost…CHARGE!

But when we are about to begin a journey into the unfamiliar-unknown…Perhaps into the thing we’ve hoped for, prayed for, believed for…our destiny...the first thing we need to do is camp out and wait for a few days.

I think one reason for this is our tendency to focus on those perceived similarities can cause us to believe we will do this just like we did all the times before. 

The worst enemy of a life and walk of faith is not so much active attacks to rob faith as it is the assumption of the familiar that presumes direction and action…That whispers like Samson, “I’ll shake myself like I always did & Father will show up.” (Jdg 16:19)

Camping…slowing down…waiting…can quiet us so we hear. If the Israelites had been noisily marching forward charging into the Promised Land, they would never have heard the instructions of the leaders as they went through the camp.

Although the water didn’t part until the priests stepped into the river…they didn’t step into the river until instructions were received. When beginning an unknown journey…Follow after peace…stay in peace…that is where faith is. Don't surrender to the pressure of stepping out in faith...prematurely.

And...don’t get discouraged…you’re lodging…not settling at this place. It’s temporary – but it is vital.

Watch – Watching allows us to see…to watch for the what and when.

”…when you see…then (the what) you shall set out…” (v. 3) A significant part of waiting is watching.

If we don’t wait and watch we suddenly find ourselves wondering, “How did I miss that?”

It’s the difference between interstate driving and leisurely driving down a country road on a cool spring morning…with the windows down. Both have their place, but the pace of a slow, unhurried drive allows us to see and hear more…things we simply miss at a too-often-too-fast pace.

Worship – Worship builds in us a preparedness that the Bible calls “consecration.”

“Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” (v.5)

Basically, “consecrate” means “to dedicate or devote one’s self to God.”

It’s the place or point at which we allow Father to confront those areas in us that may weigh us down or hinder our success on a journey in the unfamiliar-unknown.

But note the instruction of verse 4, “…there shall be between you and (the Ark) a distance of about ½ mile…Do not come near it that you may know the way in which you shall go…”

Fact is…

We cannot follow if we are leading…

We will not follow Whom we do not worship…

And we do not worship Him to Whom we are not consecrated.

It’s our choice…if we make that choice…then we can finally be ready to Walk.

They didn’t crawl but neither did they run…they walked. There may be times along the way when we will run or crawl or even fly…but mostly…we walk. There will be times of suddenly the walls collapse with just a shout…but those times are often proceeded by mostly walking.

When you feel like you’re walking in circles…keep walking…because ”you shall set out…” (v.3) and suddenly step into His destiny planned for us before time began.

On this unfamiliar-unknown journey there are no road maps…No GPS works. And get used to this...whether it’s a day, a weekend, or an extended trip…it’s a repeated-lifetime journey…it’s the faith-challenge of our life in God.

Father, give me…Wisdom to be wary and not assume I “know how to do this”… 

Patience to wait… 

Ears to hear… 

Eyes to see… 

The heart to consecrate and worship…and 

The courage to walk when You say “set out.” In Jesus’ Name.

Blessings,

Michael M

Please reply to MannMuses@aol.com

PS…Just in case you struggle with the thought of unfamiliar-unknown journeys…Think about this…

To Whom is it unfamiliar-unknown? Not Father. He’s already been there ahead of you.

A LIFE THAT MATTERS (2) - Empowered for Impact

When you think of making an impact…of succeeding…of a life that matters…what ingredients come to mind?

Remember that last motivational, life coaching, success seminar…what experiences and training were recommended?

I’d venture to say not the recipe we find in Joseph’s life.

That recipe? Enslavement + Imprisonment + Forgotten = Empowerment for impact.

Imagine it’s you…

• ·         Barely escaping death at the hands of your brothers you’re sold to a people less-than-friendly toward “your kind.”

• ·         Forced to travel on a days-without-end caravan, not knowing where you would end up or if you’d even live, you arrive involuntarily in Egypt having learned the lessons of the Coat, Crater and Caravan (see 1).

• ·         Any hope of ever again seeing family, friends or home has evaporated like morning mist on a hot day, along with the thinnest wisp of a thought of your dreams coming true.

• ·         Enslaved to Potiphar, Pharaoh’s chief of security, Father gives you extraordinary favor and you rise to oversee all your owner’s enterprises.

• ·         So successful are you that ”…all Potiphar had to concern himself with was eating three meals a day.” (Gen. 39:6)

• ·         Oh…you’re a high school senior or college freshman!

How would you have responded?

My response would have been something akin to, “Whew…Thank You Lord! Not as good as it was back home but not as bad as it could be. From privileged son to slave but my owner is successful, powerful and likes me (thank You)…so no worries about eating. No Sir…not nearly as bad as it could’ve been. Lesson learned!”

It’s not recorded how long Joseph worked for Potiphar or how long it took before Potiphar promoted him but, given his age, likely a few years. During that time, Potiphar’s wife noticed this young hunk and propositioned him…which he flatly rebuffed.

Refusing Joseph’s “no,” she persisted until, “one day he went into the house to do his work but none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by his coat saying, ‘Come to bed with me!’ Leaving his coat in her hand, Joseph ran out of the house.” (Gen. 39:11-12)

There is no indication that Joseph did one thing wrong. He probably expected others to be in the house and had he known they weren’t there he wouldn’t have entered.

False accusations, based on the yet another coat, follow and Joseph was promptly but wrongfully imprisoned.

What must he have thought? ”Not again! What did I do this time? I’m trying to live honorably and this is what I get!?!? Hey…God…You seeing this?”

Finding favor again Joseph served as a tacit assistant warden, but still…he was imprisoned.

One day two of Pharaoh’s officials were imprisoned. Assigned to Joseph, after a while he interpreted a dream for each…one good, one not. One would be released and restored…the other, executed. 

Speaking with the official to be restored Joseph said, “…please remember me and do me a favor…Mention me to Pharaoh, so he might let me out…” (40:14-15)

Apparently the official agreed and I imagine Joseph thought, “Finally!” But…the official “forgot all about Joseph, never giving him another thought.” (40:23) Joseph didn’t “feel” forgotten…there wasn’t the “symptoms” of forgotten…he was forgotten.

What would you have thought when you realized…forgotten? Perhaps, “Could I please get a little respite…just catch my breath?”

How many times did Joseph think about his family and “back home”? Often…at least judging from Joseph’s reaction when they were later reunited.

Prison cells intensify those thoughts and feelings and I imagine there was a regular onslaught of such until “…the end of two full years…” (41:1)

Two full years…Not a year and seven months…not 23 months, 29 days…

Two full years…730 days…imprisoned AND forgotten...not one moment less.

Two full years...I sense a “How long Father?” in those three words.

Then…after two full years…remembered…and suddenly freed and promoted to second in command…From a prison-position to a palace-position…from sitting in a prison cell to riding in Pharaoh’s Chariot.

But…couldn’t God, the Omnipotent One, have performed a Book of Acts release earlier?

Yes…but He didn’t.

Couldn’t our Omniscient God have sent that official a “Forget something?” dream sooner?

Sure…but He didn’t.

Couldn’t He have immediately transported Joseph to freedom?

Absolutely…but He didn’t…for “two full years.”

Why?

I see two reasons.

First, the stage had not yet been fully set. Pharaoh needed an encounter with the Living God…It arrived in an unexplained dream.

Had Joseph been released one day early, who would have explained it?  With a too-soon release history might have recorded, “An unparalleled famine caused the Ancient Far East to starve into extinction.”

By not being released too soon and through explaining Pharaoh’s dream, Joseph was suddenly positioned to impact nations, including his own.

Prison cells aren’t just about us…others’ destiny…their very lives…may hang in the balance.

Second, not only was the stage not fully set, it’s doubtful Joseph was fully ready for the pressures of a palace-position.

Just as craters and caravans force us to face and allow Father’s removal of debilitating weaknesses, the pace, privacy and predictability of prison cells allow Father to build character and strengths in us so palace-positions and Pharaoh-chariots don’t destroy us and we don’t hurt others.

Think not?…Consider…What do you suppose young, spoiled, entitlement-attitude Joseph would have done to his brothers or Potiphar and his wife if he had been promoted to so much authority too soon? Yeah…me too.

Instead, there’s not a hint of retaliation toward Potiphar or his wife…no thought of “I told you” or “Now you’re in for it” when his brothers showed up and bowed.

Many want a palace-position standing in Pharaoh’s chariot…few will work in a prison-position or sit in a prison cell to allow Father’s preparation.

The point? When everything has fallen apart regardless of who’s responsible…when enslaved or in an unpardonable prison…when forgotten by others…

There is One Who can…Who will…pick up and reassemble your shattered life into something new…something better…something you could never imagine or ask…

One Who remembers you…Who can never forget you…

When being steeped in a recipe of enslavement + imprisonment + forgotten…

THERE’S NO TELLING FOR WHAT HE’S PREPARING YOU or what He’s preparing for you!

Father, thank You that it is impossible for You to forget me. Build into me everything I need for the future You planned through me and for me before time began.

In Jesus’ Name…Amen.

Blessings,

Michael M

Please reply to mannmuses@aol.com

PS…When we're going through times of enslavement, imprisonment and forgotten there is remarkable temptation to try to escape but I've learned Father has a really good pursuit team and that if we will wait in grace our Master Chef will blend every ingredient into His masterwork of a Life That Matters.

A LIFE THAT MATTERS: A Coat, A Crater, A Caravan

Are you like most people…you want to know that it matters in some way that you walked this earth?

Not that your name was up in lights, you walked a red carpet or the like…you simply want to make a difference…have an impact…in some way.

What got me thinking about this was reading the life of Joseph in Genesis 37+.

Remember him? Leader-of-Egypt, saved-the-Ancient-Far-East-from-starvation, married-well, palace-living Joseph.

He’s often, rightfully, cited as a premier example of a make-an-impact successful life…but two parts of the story captured my thoughts of late. Two events…the course of which made him the man he became and prepared him for the impact he would have.

First, a Joseph-history:

• The 11^th of Jacob’s 12 sons, Joseph was the 1^st child of Jacob’s 1^st love…Rachel.

• At 17, while working with his brothers, Joseph ”…brought back a bad report about them to their father.” (37:2)  The story doesn’t record the brothers actually did anything wrong and the grammar indicates Joseph caused the bad report…he manipulated the facts making his brothers look bad and himself look good.

• Then there’s that coat…Now Israel (Jacob) loved Joseph more than all his children…he made Joseph an elaborate multicolored coat. When his brothers realized their father loved him more than them, they grew to hate him…(37:3-4) Having lived in a place that actually had winter we made sure our sons had coats. I don’t remember any of them becoming venomous toward another over a coat…ever. Why, then, would a coat cause Joseph’s brothers to suddenly become hate filled? Because that coat was a royal garment, not suitable for working…probably a boss or supervisor’s garment. That coat suddenly confirmed what the brothers suspected…Jacob’s favoritism toward Joseph. Here’s the scenario…a self-serving Joseph with a history of manipulating things to look good becomes the supervisor of his older brothers. Imagine how they felt…”This kid! My boss? I don’t think so!”

• And, of course, Joseph’s dreams (37:5-11)…The way Joseph handled them and the reaction from his brothers and father indicates Joseph couldn’t wait to tell them how great he was going to be.

So alienating was Joseph, his brothers grew jealous of him, came to hate him, couldn’t speak a civil word to him and wanted to kill him. Not the impact we hope to effect in others but that was Joseph’s…and did it get a response.

Joseph’s brothers hit their limit, ripped off his coat…threw him in a crater…and sold him to an Egypt-bound slave trader’s caravan. (They were going to kill him so not a bad alternative, considering.)

A phrase in 37:2, captures the tenor of the story for me…“the lad (Joseph) with the sons (brothers).” It has the feel that a spot-on description of Joseph would be “spoiled brat." You know the kind…an-arrogant-impressed-with-himself-likely-not-a-decent-day’s-work-in-his-life guy. A bad and unpleasant combination. Thanks to that combination Joseph ended up away from family, friends and anything familiar…at the ripe old age of 17.

The trek by camel caravan would have taken 10 – 20 days minimum. Because the story takes turn in Gen. 38, I think it took several weeks longer, if not months. I wonder…how did Joseph use the time? What would you have done?

I’ve walked with enough people, gone from coats to craters to caravans enough and lived long enough to guess…I think accurately.

• After a fear-filled pity party we engage in one of two activities…usually both.

• An anger-filled and possible expletive-laced rant as we rail about those no good so-and-sos who did this to me/us!!!!!!

• As that dust settles and our adrenaline approaches normalcy, if we’re personally secure enough, we engage in some deep, introspective soul searching as we allow Father to shine His light on areas we haven’t previously dared let a dim candlelight near…Discovering things about ourselves that disgust and almost horrify.

• What follows is something akin to “OMG! How could I? What was I thinking? Forgive me Father.”

Here’s the thing…elaborate multicolored coats have the potential to imperceptively infect us with harmful, disease-laced attitudes…attitudes that, left untreated, will debilitate and destroy.

Craters and caravans cause us to face those infections presenting us with two choices…walk out the course necessary to remove the infection or walkout on the course by prematurely climbing out of the crater and jumping off the caravan.

Walking out Father’s full course removes from us things that should have never been there in the first place. Such times are agonizing and scary…It feels like the process will never end and we won’t survive. It does end and more than surviving…we are healed and gain Spirit-born antibodies against those harmful-to-others, debilitating-to-us infections elaborate multicolored coats bring.

But if we walkout, not finishing the course…like failing to complete a prescribed course of medicine…we risk a relapse of the infection. The thing about relapses is they return with a vengeance leaving us, in the words of Jesus, “worse off than before.” The only cure for a relapse is another course…using stronger medicine.

I think that’s what happened to Joseph in that crater and on that caravan…he walked out…completed…Father’s prescribed course. And when he arrived in Egypt scripture records, “The LORD was with Joseph, so he succeeded in everything he did…”(Gen. 39:2)

We all, at times, strut around in coats that are too much for us…sit in craters too deep to climb out…get stuck on caravans going to God only knows where. Coats can be discarded and their infections healed…craters can be overcome…caravan treks do end...and on the other side waits a life that matters. But to get there we must take off the coat, resist climbing out of the crater or jumping off the caravan.

Wherever you are today…the course is laid out for a life that matters…it’s your choice…Walk it out or walk out on it…Healing or relapse?

Father, forgive me where I have allowed the attitudes of multicolored coats to infect. I give myself now to Your prescribed course. Please grant the grace and strength to walk it out. Please give me eyes to see the possibility of what might be when I complete Your course…a life that matters.

In Jesus’ Name…Amen

Blessings…Part 2 next time.

Michael M

Reply to: MannMuses@aol.com

PS…If you’re still wondering about this, consider…Why is Gen. 39:2, when Joseph arrives in Egypt having lost his coat, after sitting in a crater and traveling on a caravan, the first time scripture describes Joseph as successful?