Have you ever felt God leading you to do something that didn’t make sense? I’ve felt that way several times. Once I was facing a serious challenge to my character. My initial strategy was to go on the defensive and then attack. As I mapped out my plans, God had a different strategy in mind. It was to be still and quiet. It was the opposite of what I felt should happen. What I wanted to do made sense, and what God was asking didn’t. I had a choice to make. I could choose to do what made sense or I could obey. I decided to obey. What God asked me to do worked out better than anything I could have done.
In Joshua 6, the Israelites faced their first enemy in the Promised Land. Jericho had thick, intimidating walls. Israel didn’t have siege equipment or battering rams. I’m sure Joshua met with his military leaders to devise a strategy. Then he met the captain of the Lord’s army. He was told to simply march quietly around the walls for seven days. On the seventh trip around the wall on the seventh day, they were to blast trumpets and shout. It didn’t make sense, but Joshua had learned that victory comes through obedience. He followed God’s strategy, rather than his own, and God destroyed what had been impossible and intimidating.
Zechariah 4:6 says, “The angel told me to give Zerubbabel this message from the Lord: ‘You will succeed, not by military might or by your own strength, but by my spirit’” (GNT). So much in life depends on obedience to what God desires for us to do. However, we must first stop and ask what He wants in each situation. I don’t know what intimidating walls you’re facing today, but I do know that His strategy will work better than yours. It may not make sense or seem like the right thing to do in the moment. It might even seem crazy or counterintuitive, but remember that obedience brings victory. Follow His leading and plan, then watch the walls fall before your eyes.
Photo by Steve Douglas on Unsplash
Devotions by Chris Hendrix 