“This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.
Joshua 1:8
Joshua was succeeding Moses as the national and spiritual leader of Israel. Unlike his predecessor, Joshua was less-experienced and untried. He did not have a formal education like his master Moses who had a royal training in the palace of Pharaoh. He did not have the kind of exposure Moses had. However, he had learned a lot from Moses, whom he faithfully served. So it was his turn to lead a people of about two-and-a-half million. He had never done that before.
The people of Israel at that time were such a notorious people, known for their rebellion and flagrant defiance to God’s law. Joshua had been a faithful disciple of Moses, but he was never in the shoes of Moses. He had never led at that level. The challenge and enormity of the tasks before him loomed so large. God also knew how enormous the tasks were, but He would not leave Joshua to himself. He had a big secret to tell Joshua about how to succeed in his new role and responsibility as a leader.
God spoke by himself to Joshua, commanding him to arise to the tasks ahead of him, to be confident and assured of His Presence and Help. And then God gave Joshua one of the keys to succeeding in spiritual leadership:
- Joshua was to make God’s word his confession, creating time to read and study God’s law. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth,… God’s word must always be in his mouth, in reading, conversation and confession.
- Joshua must meditate on God’s Word day and night. He must spend time to dwell on God’s Word until the wisdom in it comes forth to him for instruction and direction.
Meditating on God’s word would not be possible for Joshua if God’s word departs from his mouth, if he failed to read and memorize God’s word. We can only meditate on the word we have heard, read or studied. We dwell on it, contemplate it, reflect over it so that we can understand how God’s word aligns with our own situations and those of others around us.
Meditating God’s word will empower us to be doers of God’s word. It will release prosperity to us, making our way prosperous spiritually, emotionally, physically and financially. Our walk with God will become richer, more meaningful and impactful to us and others around. God will derive greater pleasure from our fellowship with Him. Finally, it will bring good success to our lives, on everything God has called us to do for him, and whatever we lay our hands upon for the Lord.
