And The Lord

“And the Lord said unto Joshua, Get thee up; wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face? Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff. Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed: neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you. Up, sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow: for thus saith the Lord God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you.” Joshua‬ ‭7:10-13‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Do we, like the children of Israel, fall on our face before God, crying "Why O LORD?"; when faced with disappointments and failures?  Do we examine our hearts and let Him expose the accursed things hidden there? Or do we, in unbelief, just blame Him for not being powerful enough to perform as we think He should? 

How many of us are willing to admit that it is our sin that stays His hand?

Still today, we cannot stand before our enemies when we have accursed things hidden in our hearts! We must repent of the unforgiveness, bitterness, anger and unbelief we have buried beneath the  treasures of the world we have coveted! The value of its abundance pales in comparison to the peace that comes with obedience to God's Word!

Father, I come before you this morning with a heavy heart, aware and convicted of my failure to obey Your Word! I have hidden the accursed things of the world amongst my stuff and repent of my sin! I have coveted its treasures and ask for forgiveness, again! Please LORD, continue to shine Your light on the areas of my life that are not pleasing in Your Sight! Make me able to stand before my enemies as I submit to You!

Even so - MARANATHA! 

From 11/7/15