PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verse 14): How often have I been deceived in this world, Father? How often has that deception been because I did not seek You in that moment? The same applies to Your people under Joshua in this verse. They were deceived by the Gibeonites and made a treaty of peace with them but did so without seeking Your counsel as You stated here. Please forgive me for not always seeking Your counsel, Father. Forgive me for often trying to go about things on my own instead of going to You and relying on Your wisdom and counsel throughout the various situations this life brings to me. Help me to be better at always seeking You first and not myself.
PROMISE (verse 19): Although Your people made a promise/vow to the Gibeonites without reaching out to You, they chose to honor that promise. You tell us to be men of our word and that’s exactly what Your people did in this situation, even if it wasn’t with Your counsel. They made a promise to the Gibeonites under deceptive conditions and once they discovered the deception, they chose to still honor the promise they had made to them but cursed them for their deceptions to live in subpar conditions as servants for the remainder of their lives and generations. Help me to be a man of my word throughout my life, Father, even if the promises I make at times may not be with Your counsel/wisdom.
ATTITUDE (verses 4-6): Father, I see the Gibeonites purposely acted very deceptively in this moment. They feared Your people and You after the many victories You gave them. Additionally, they chose to embrace that fear to dig into their flesh to perform a very planned out, yet deceptive, action towards Your people. In this act they deceived Your people and Joseph to make a treaty with them under false pretenses, which were founded out after the fact, unfortunately. I say all of this to ask You for Your help, Father. Help me to live my life in a way that is free of deception from my end, Father. Help me to embrace truth and honesty throughout my life, regardless of what the outcome may be. Help me to live my life in a way that always glorifies You with my truth, honestly, and humility to accept the results of any situation with You as my compass.
COMMAND (verses 19-21): In this verse, I see You using Your people as a great example of a command You’ve given in the past. Your people made a vow to another group of people to have peace amongst them. Your people made this vow without consulting You first, which was obviously their mistake. They chose to honor that vow, however, by not destroying their people and instead cursing them to be servants for the remainder of their lives and generations to come as a result of their deceptive nature. They still honored their vow, as You have commanded us to do, but they did so in a way that would still honor and glorify You.
EXAMPLE (verses 24-27): I see such a great leader in Joshua, but also amazing grace from You throughout today’s scripture, Father. Joshua chose to still honor the vow they made even after discovering the deception of the Gibeonites. They wanted to glorify Your kingdom by showing others that even under deceptive practices, God’s people are still people of their word and of God’s kingdom. Joshua did this by ensuring the Gibeonites were not destroyed as was originally intended I would assume, but at the same time ensured they were still punished for their deceptions by making them and their future generations servants doing hard labor. At the same time, You show us Your grace on Your people for making the mistake of issuing promises without first consulting You. Who knows what would have happened if they would have sought Your counsel and wisdom first. What I do know, however, is that they didn’t, but You still showed them Your grace by loving them through their bad decisions.
*DAILY NOTE: Today I am reminded of Your great power and love for Your people. In today’s scripture, no towns were slaughtered/destroyed. Instead, a town was actually saved even though it was through their own deception and from Your people making decisions without You. At the same time, I’m reminded of Your great power of protection on this day both from the scripture and from my life. In the scripture, You show me Your hedge of protection by keeping Your people safe throughout the Gibeonite’s deceptions. The Gibeonites could’ve used this deception to slaughter from the inside, but instead You protected Your people. I am also reminded of Your protection as I see this great storm over my town. I see a lot of yards being flooded right now even in my own neighborhood, yet when I look to my backyard it’s as-if there is a wall keeping the flood off my property. The neighbors behind me have flood water several feet into their yard, yet we have no flood water in our yard. Thank You so much for Your hedge of protection over my home and family, Father. Thank You for always looking out for us throughout everything this crazy life has to throw at us. I am so grateful for all You are and all You do for my family and I. Help me to remember to live this life in appreciation, awe, and humility towards Your blessings on my life, Father.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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