TODAY IS YESTERDAY’S TOMORROW—8
“There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.” Josh. 1: 5-6.
These two verses are tied together, if Joshua’s future would exhibit a profit. God always states the two sides of the coin every time He establishes a covenant with a man. To Joshua He offered His unfailing presence and vowed never to abandon him. "I will not fail thee nor forsake thee."
However Joshua must put on strength and courage. Yes, he was a warrior yesterday. He taught Amalekites a lesson they would not forget in a hurry. He was a war commander yesterday. However, God knew that change and decay are the lot that befalls all sons of Adam. No strong man from yesterday is capable to handle the challenges of today unless he keeps on being strong. The wisdom of yesterday may not be adequate to checkmate the enemy’s intransigence today.
"Joshua" or whatever your name is, “no matter how laudable or impressive your vision may be, no matter how promising your future is, even when God has volunteered His presence, it is still demanded for you to be strong and courageous to actualize it.”
This was hammered into the psyche of Joshua from the onset of his ministry that he could not make any mistake about it.
Investing in and embracing your future is a business of unflinching faith. The cowards, the unstable and the capricious are not wanted in the future.
Boldness, courage, is not optional if you will be decorated with honor in life. It is the nerve. Since Adam, the simple rule of thumb is the survival of the fittest. Life has never offered itself as a game. Even if it is, the best gets the win.
To pull through life, programs of imbecility or unhealthy docility must be effectively deleted and replaced with passion, zest and guts. Friends, no man, however close, will actualize your vision for you. You have got to face life, your future, with the mindset of "if no man helps, I will forge ahead". In the language of someone, "Every man for himself, God for us all."
There is a land set before you. There is a divine assignment in your hand. Man will tend to rise against it. They will not be able to stop you as long as you realize God’s presence with you and are ready to be strong and courageous.
You can do it. You can pass that examination. You can get that degree. You can succeed in that calling. That relationship will work out well. No devil can stand against you. "Only be thou strong and courageous"
It is evident in our world that “the cowards die many times before their death”. Some one said sometime ago, “With a simple rule of thumb, it is better to be feared than to be loved”. He meant that woe unto a man when every one loves him and his convictions all the time. To survive in a world of rivalry and unhealthy competitions you’ve got to be courageous and valiant in God. “Through God, we shall do valiantly…” Psal.60: 12; 108: 13.
In 1Cor. 16: 13, Paul, admonishing the believers wrote, “Watch ye, Stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong”. No demilitarized zone in life. You must put on strength to win. “Let (even) the weak say, “I am strong” is the command to them that will enter into their inheritance. Beloved, guard the loins of your heart. Insist that the terrains of life will not stop your resolve to get to your rest.
John Bunyan, the author of The Pilgrim’s Progress wrote:
He who will valiant be “Gainst all disaster
Let him in constancy Follow the Master
There’s no discouragement Shall make him once relent
His first avowed intent To be a Pilgrim
The heaven is waiting for you. The angels are ready to applaud your efforts and your courage. You can make it. You can win. The gene of a Victor is in your system. You are the product of God’s ingenuity. The reason Christ won is that you might become a champion in and through Him. Be courageous. Be valiant. Be bold Go for your inheritance in God and in life. You are a winner by design!
Shalom.
