Devotional: A God-Sized Answer

Despite his missteps (what leader doesn’t have them?), Joshua was a man of prayer who trusted in the Lord’s promises. I imagine Joshua in the midst of battle, at moments when an enemy’s sword was bearing down on him, remembering the Lord’s voice encouraging him supernaturally: “Remember, I will not abandon you. This is my promise to the end. Just be courageous and keep striving.”

No one is born a leader. A leader is made. Perhaps certain abilities and appealing qualities point to an aptitude for leadership, but character is what defines leadership centered on God’s will. The church needs both—men with charisma and men with character—but preferably the latter, because they are the best candidates to guide others. Why? Because they place enormous importance on humility, because they know how to depend entirely on God’s power for him to carry out his work of redemption and salvation. Joshua knew that the victories behind him and the conquests of enemy territory by the sword were not the product of his obedient leadership, but of his dependence on God’s power.

The Amorites were fleeing in terror from the Lord’s army, but divine intervention was needed for complete victory. And Joshua cried out to God, asking for what seemed impossible in the presence of all Israel: “Sun, stand still over Gibeon, and you, moon, over the Valley of Aijalon” (Joshua 10:12). God’s answer came immediately: “And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped…” (Joshua 10:13a). The Lord was fighting for his people, so any miracle could happen. And this is a message for the church of Jesus Christ, and especially for intercessors—for men and women of prayer.

Joshua, repentant of his failure in making an alliance with the Gibeonites without consulting the Lord, now prayed with confidence in the midst of battle, crying out for divine action to secure victory. A shower of hailstones battered the enemy and darkened the day as the night grew longer. The army of the five kings, the most powerful in the whole territory, lay fallen on the battlefield because God was fighting for his people. Israel would not forget that day. The praying church is like a Gilgal of miracles. The leader who prays for the supernatural and the extraordinary with humility and faith receives God-sized answers… if his faith places Jesus at the center, if he cries out for God’s will to be favorable. I have seen it more than once. Haven’t you?

God hears the prayer that springs from a humbled heart and trusts in his power to do the impossible for his children. He takes away their fears so they can move forward and grow in spiritual maturity without losing sight of the goal, which is Christ, our hope; he confounds those who try to undermine foundations laid upon the Rock; and finally, he takes justice into his own hands, performing mighty acts to destroy everything that hinders the advance of his Kingdom. Out of love for his bride, the church, he can stop the sun at its zenith and the moon at the mountain’s summit. But be careful! It is not about the one who prays; it is not about the prayer, but about Jesus, about the will of God. He is always faithful, the perfecter of faith. It is all a matter of faith.

Each day in Christ is a new opportunity to glorify God and worship the One who lives forever. Worship the Lord in the midst of your battles. Seek him, Church, because he never stops fighting for you, not for an instant!

May God bless his Word!