“This is my command–be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 (NLT)
Today, Keith, my husband, is retiring from his second career. Isn’t interesting how God walks us through our lives? We walk through this life enjoying the beauty and pleasures and disdaining the ugly struggles, hurts, and weeping. But when we look back, we can see that we have grown through both the beauty and the ugly.
Joshua had walked with God as Moses’ assistant for 40 years. Moses had died, and God commissioned Joshua to lead the Israelites into the Promised Land.
God said that He had given the Israelites the land. It was now time to possess it, for God would be with them. Joshua’s responsibility was to be strong and courageous following God’s guidance.
Each step prepared them for the next.
Each step in Keith’s professional life has prepared him for his next path. Twenty-two years in the Air Force as a JAG (attorney) living in different cultures caused him to be curious about the past experiences of others and to learn from their experiences. Living in the midst of danger and seeing God bring him through stronger than before built his courage.
He brought his love of traveling the world to the University of Redlands and took students on life-changing study abroad trips, visiting businesses throughout the world. The methodical military approach of organizing people, identifying the situation, and defining the mission and strategies prepared him for the challenges he would experience as well as cause him to spearhead innovation and new programs at the university.
Growing up in Oklahoma, Keith never imagined all that he would experience.
I’m sure that Joshua never imagined that he would cross over into the Promised Land and lead his soldiers around the walls of Jericho for seven days and watch the walls tumble down. But God had prepared him. He had seen God at work, parting the Red Sea, covering the ground with manna from heaven, gushing water from a rock, sending quail to the camp, seeing Moses’ face shine after he had been with God.
God is with His people wherever they go, preparing them for the mountaintops and the valleys, leading them by the still waters. Pouring out His peace upon them.
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Keith doesn’t know what lies ahead. But he knows God. God has equipped him for his next battle and his next victory.
It will be the best ever!
Father, You are the God Who is Near. Take Keith by his hand and lead him onto his next path. Thank You for preparing him. Bless him with strength and courage as he follows Your guidance. May he honor You as he serves You and Your people. Bless my Beloved, Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
3 responses to “God Equips and Leads His People”
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I am amaze how our Lord uses me in ministry with preaching and doing pastoral care with the congregation and others who may not be part of the congregation. I continue to be in classes to continue to grow, especially to spend more quiet time with our Lord to be able to hear His voice and block out the world for a little while. And even with all of my shortcomings God’s grace on my own life is always enough and as long as I continue to seek the Lord he will be found,
Eileen, yes, I am awestruck when I look back and get a glimpse of God at work in me or in other people. Thank you for your commitment to God and His people. It honors God when you point people to Him, when you minister to their needs, and when you strive to know Him in a deeper way. May God richly bless your ministry and reveal His presence with you every moment of the day. Karen