From Joshua 10:16-28

As Israel sweeps across the Promised Land, the kings of five cities hide away in a cave.  They don’t evade Israel’s attention and Joshua instructs the Israelites to close the kings in the cave until the fortified cities were conquered.  After the cities fall to Israel, Joshua returns to the cave and has the kings brought out.  He has the leaders of the Israelites put their feet on the necks of these five kings and proclaims a prophecy for the Israelites to “not be afraid or dismayed: be strong and courageous, for thus the Lord will do to all your enemies against whom you fight.” The kings are then put to death and Israel moves forward in taking control of the Promised Land.

There are a wide variety of reactions these events can inspire in us today.  Maybe you read these verses and think to yourself “that seems kind of extreme,” or you read these verses and think to yourself “this sounds so mundane, so ordinary.” Comparing this conquest to the conquest of Jericho, where God just made the city walls collapse with a shout, mundane and ordinary seem like appropriate words.  It can remind us that God works like this very consistently.  Most of us reading this have seen God work in our lives through “mundane, ordinary” things more regularly than we see God work through incredible displays of power.  When we feel alone, when we feel like God isn’t actively working in our lives, it can be helpful to remember that He works through the ordinary and the mundane just as powerfully as He works through the extraordinary and the supernatural.  Sometimes we need the reminder to look around and see how He might be working through our community, through our vocations, and through our daily routines.

Focus on God

We are reminded in these verses that God graciously works through ordinary looking things too.

Function in Our Lives

We are encouraged to look around for God working in subtle ways.

Topics to Pray About                                                               

  • Thank God for His ability to bless us in so many varied ways.
  • Confess to God the times where you don’t look for Him in the ordinary parts of your life.
  • Ask God to help you see His work.

In His Service,

J. LeBorious