You Have To Take The First Step

Joshua 3:1-17

Pray

Did you ever notice that as people, we’re kind of obsessed with weight?

We are always talking about how people in Hollywood are too skinny.

She's so skinny she must have to jump around in the shower just to get wet.

And even more than being obsessed with being skinny, we love to talk about how we’re getting too fat.

Last week I saw someone at Home Depot that I hadn't seen for years and she said, “Hi Pete, it's been a long time. Wow you got fat.”

I said, “thank you I've been working really hard at it, I'm glad you noticed.”

But we do like to talk about other people putting on weight, and about how we're putting on weight.

And because we're all obsessed about weight, there are all kind of diet stuff available for you.

If you want to buy a workout to help you lose it, then just turn on the t.v. and you and pick up a copy of P90X, Insanity, Brazil Butt lift, Hip Hop abs or a hundred other programs.

If you want to watch other people lose weight then just turn on the t.v. and you can see shows like The biggest loser or celebrity fit club or dance your butt off.

I'm guessing that almost all of us here right now have either had concerns about our weight, or are concerned about it at this very moment.

You probably heard about the guy who was trying to lose weight, but came to the office one day with two dozen donuts.

His co-workers asked him why he got donuts if he's trying to diet, and he answered, "Well, as I came to the corner where the donut shop was, I told God that if He wanted me to buy some donuts to have a parking spot open right in front of the shop. And low and behold, when I arrived there were two spots open right in front...on my 8th time around the block

Do you know what it takes to start to lose weight? (diet and exercise)

You see we know what it takes and we’re really good at talking about how we should diet and about how we should exercise.

But do you know what we’re really bad at? Dieting and exercising.

And until you actually go through with your plans, you’re never going to see any results.

And this is a similar situation that the Israelites were facing in our section of Scripture today.

We look to the book of Joshua.

Joshua has since taken over the leadership position of Moses, and is beginning the process of claiming the promised land for the Israelites.

And God tells Joshua how He wants them to travel.

He tells him, to have the priests carrying the ark of the covenant go before the people.

And have the people follow behind and not to close, because the ark is holy.

And then God goes onto tell Joshua, to reach the promised land, you must cross the Jordan river.

And we don’t have any boats, so when you get up to the Jordan…have the priests carrying the ark walk right into it.

And when they get into it, I’ll make the water stop so that all of the people can cross.

So the priests approach the Jordan, and they notice that they river is still in its flood stage.

Now we've had some pretty decent rainstorms in the past month here, so picture one of these big storms coming through and then picture the Brady river after they're done.

What does the Brady river look like?

It’s muddy, and moving really quickly…with all kinds of branches and stuff rushing down it.

Is it a good place to go swimming in?

Do you think you would be able to make it from one side to the other very easily?

Of course you will, drive across the bridge silly.

Well when the priests reached this section of the Jordon, they were looking at something very similar.

Now understand that the Jordon, is about half as wide as our river right here, but the terrain was a little different.

You see, the Jordon was really cut down into the land from the waters rushing by, so when you got in the Jordon…it wasn’t like getting into the ocean.

I don’t know about you, but when I get into the water…I kind of ease myself into it.

I start with my toes, and then very slowly work my way into it.

And little by little I keep moving forward until I’m the whole way in.

Well, you couldn’t do this with the Jordon.

With the Jordon, because it was cut into the earth so deeply…you were either in, or out.

And this was even more true at the flood stage.