(Joshua 4:1-24) Now when the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying, 2 “Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe, 3 and command them, saying, ‘Take up for yourselves twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet are standing firmly, and carry them over with you and lay them down in the encampment where you will spend the night.’” 4 So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe; 5 and Joshua said to them, “Cross again to the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel. 6 This shall be a sign among you; when your children ask later, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ 7 then you shall say to them, ‘That the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off.’ So these stones shall become a memorial to the sons of Israel forever.”
8 So the sons of Israel did exactly as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, just as the Lord spoke to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel; and they carried them over with them to the encampment and put them down there. 9 Then Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan at the place where the feet of the priests who carried the ark of the covenant were standing, and they are there to this day. 10 For the priests who carried the ark were standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything was completed that the Lord had commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua. And the people hurried and crossed; 11 and when all the people had finished crossing, then the ark of the Lord and the priests crossed in front of the people. 12 The sons of Reuben, the sons of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over in battle formation before the sons of Israel, just as Moses had spoken to them; 13 about forty thousand equipped for war, crossed for battle before the Lord to the desert plains of Jericho.
14 On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, so that they revered him, just as they had revered Moses all the days of his life.
15 Now the Lord said to Joshua, 16 “Command the priests who carry the ark of the testimony that they come up from the Jordan.” 17 So Joshua commanded the priests, saying, “Come up from the Jordan.” 18 It came about when the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord had come up from the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up to the dry ground, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, and went over all its banks as before.
19 Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth of the first month and camped at Gilgal, on the eastern edge of Jericho. 20 As for those twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set them up at Gilgal. 21 And he said to the sons of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’ 22 then you shall inform your children, saying, ‘Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground.’ 23 For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed, just as the Lord your God had done to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed; 24 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, so that you may fear the Lord your God forever.”
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
In any relationship, whether with a spouse, a parent, siblings or friendships... when we go through tough issues or phases, it is far too easy to remember only the problems and forget about the fun times and the good times. It can help to take a breath and think back to those "good" times so we don't vilify our loved ones.
In order to fix these relationships, or attempt reconciliation, or at the very least, find some peace in our hearts, knowing that we did what we could... we need to always be looking to God's word for His instructions. Confess our sins. Apologize for anything we have done that has hurt anyone. And forgive! After that, a healthy discussion about how to move forward might be required. Or, with baby steps, planning short get-togethers to only do positive things and NOT dredging up dirt.
Now, regarding our relationship with God, when we are going through whatever trials we might have, we need to take a breath, and know that with God - He only wants good for us and wants to be close to us! We should be careful that we don't judge God according to what people have done or said! God is perfect, we are not. Even as Christians, we will still make mistakes. And we live in a broken world. Because of sin!!! It is not God's fault!!! God is there, wanting and waiting to help us, when we go to Him and ask!
Therefore, even while going through struggles, no matter what they are, it is beneficial to look to God for His help and let Him sort things out! And when doubt shakes our faith a bit, think back to the "good times" when we saw God at work! It even helps to hear other people's testimonies about certain events which they have gone through. Personal testimonies not only remind and encourage us and other believers to seek out the Lord's guidance and help, to depend on Him for everything, these can be poignant messages of hope and a way to share to others the gospel message.
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