Context: Moses has just died and God is telling Joshua what he needs to do to bring the Israelites into the promised land. In this passage, God is speaking.
Text:
5 No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.
6 "Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. 7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." (NIV)
taken from www.biblegateway.com
After we pray for inspiration, the second step in the Devotional Method of Bible study is to read and meditate on the passage. I don't know about you, but the first picture I get in my mind when I think about meditation is someone sitting cross-legged on the floor, with their hands up by their shoulders making 'ok' signs. Their eyes are closed and they continually say some unintelligible word over and over. There is incense in the background.
I found it interesting that God actually commanded Joshua to meditate. Since incense was to be used only at the altar of God, I don't think this is the same type of meditation that I think of.
The Hebrew word that was originally used in the text is 'hagah', which means (among other things) "to utter, to mutter, to imagine, to speak". God has asked Joshua to continually speak the words written in the law, to think on it, and to follow it. He was to use the word of God as a standard by which to plan, to act, and to rule the Israelite nation.
How can we apply that today? I think that sometimes it is too easy to turn to God's word in print. Because I know that I always have a Bible nearby, I don't really hide the word in my heart or memorize any passages because I know I could always look it up if I needed it. I don't think that's what God had in mind. He wants us to know his word SO well that we can make our plans and act based on what we already know.
Today, find a short phrase or even a word in the passage we are reading daily (1 Peter 1:13-25 -- you can find it here) and use it as your guide. The first verse in our reading has several we could use:
- prepare your mind for action
- be self-controlled (hmmm...don't know that I want to pick THAT one!)
- set your hope fully on God's grace
Use it as a basis of your actions for the day. Let me know how it works!
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