What is your legacy or family story? How has God used it to draw you closer to him? Sometimes the best preachers aren’t preachers at all, but they are relatives who live their lives in realness trusting in the Lord. The Bible speaks about how we are living epistles read of men. I have a blessed legacy to follow. My dad was a real father. He did not attend church regularly, but he believed in the Lord. He listened to church on the radio mostly and watched it on television, and the Lord was with him.
I was reminded of this during my current Bible reading in the book of Joshua. Joshua had lost his close mentor, Moses. He was in a position where he now had to move forward with God and the purpose at hand while still processing his grief.
God spoke to him in the middle of grief saying, “Moses, my servant is dead. Therefore, the time has come for you to lead these people, the Israelites, across the Jordan River into the land I am giving them. The purpose and the plan God had for his people did not stop. It feels that way sometimes when we lose a loved one. We just want to stop, but God’s voice instructs Joshua to keep going and in doing so, to lead the people to also keep going.
Not only does God encourage Joshua to keep going, but he ministers to him as he leads him. I thought it was interesting how reminiscent God’s dealing with Joshua was of his dealing with Moses—almost like a memorial from God saying I know it hurts, but I will be with you as I was with your mentor Moses. He reminds Joshua of this not only by his words but by having him to cross over a river, Jordan. Similar to how Moses crossed over the Red Sea with the Israelites. The comfort that must have been to Joshua and Israel. It was like going down memory lane with God as if God was saying, I got you like I had Moses.
Again, God does the same when He appeared to Joshua as the Lord of hosts of the army of heaven. Like, He did with Moses, He asked Joshua to take off his shoes because he was on holy ground. Moses was told the same thing when God appeared to him through a burning bush.
Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or our enemies?”
“Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord[a] have for his servant?” The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so. – Joshua 5:13-15
All of this was God saying, I am here with you for the rest of the journey. Just because Moses is gone doesn’t mean I left you; neither does it mean, I no longer have a purpose for you. God was with Joshua. Not only was God with Joshua, but God was exalting Joshua before the people. To exalt means to raise up. Joshua was being raised above his grief. He was being raised up as one chosen by God still in the middle of grief. He was being raised up as a sign that God had not forsaken Israel. It is refreshing to me how God so carefully did this with Joshua through the reminders of how he’d dealt with his mentor Moses.
God uses our ancestors to ingrain His way into our hearts and minds. Even so, God commanded Joshua to choose 12 men, representing the twelve tribes of Israel, to grab a stone from the Jordan river and make a memorial where they decided to stay that night. Afterward, the new generation of men was commanded to be circumcised—another sign God had given their ancestor Abraham regarding the covenant of promise to make him a great nation. Although, these great men had passed; their legacy was still living strong in the earth through their descendants because of the work of the Lord. God does the very same thing today. What can you remember about your ancestors that remind you to remember the Lord and his faithfulness to you and your generation?
God uses our ancestors to draw us near to us. He tells the story of the gospel with every life submitted to him again and again. He reminds us that even though our loved ones are no longer with us—He is with us, and our loved ones’ lives continue to serve a purpose as they rest with him. This has been something I’ve recently taken comfort in. I believe it was one of Tony Evan’s daughters who shared in so many words that leaving a legacy is not always about money, but about what that life still speaks even though its currently gone.
Leave a Reply