HackerNoon is one of the leading tech blogs to learn about coding, blockchain, and startups. With over 7000 writers and 200,000 daily readers, Hacker Noon has become the voice of hackers around the world. The urban dictionary classifies a hacker as: strictly pursues creature comforts through completely legal means that while frustrating to others; allow him to live his best life
We are all hackers looking for shortcuts or ways to do things which are less stressful and more comfortable. Life is hard enough so finding the fastest way to, or through, the obstacles of life seems like an appropriate subject in this covid reality we have found ourselves in.
So over the next six weeks, we will be sharing simple shortcuts to help you live your best life. Over the next few weeks, we will offer financial, relationship, parenting, purpose, work and even a simple shortcut to God.
Today, we will look for our life shortcut from the Old Testament book called Joshua. The sixth book of the Bible. The five books of Moses anticipated the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham regarding the Promised Land. Now (either about 1400 or 1220 b.c.), through a string of military victories under Joshua, Israel conquered the land and divided it among the twelve tribes. In these battles it became evident that God fights for his people when they are "strong and courageous" (1:6, 7, 9, 18; 10:25) and put their full trust in him. At the close of the book, Joshua charged the people to remain faithful to God and to obey his commands, and the people agreed to do so. "As for me and my house," said Joshua, "we will serve the Lord" (24:15). Although anonymous, the book appears to contain eyewitness testimony, some of which may have been written by Joshua himself. ESV commentary
Let’s jump into the book from the beginning
After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. 3 I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. 4 Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. 5 No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them. Joshua 1:1-6 NIV
The promise of God is clear from the beginning of the text but especially in verse three:“I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses.” We all should love the thought that God promises are forever. When he says, Yes. It’s not contingent on whether you’re alive. If he makes a covenant. It’s FOREVER. Think about all His promises. Think about Jesus' promise. Think about the great commands of God. They have not changed because the world is “different” today. God will not negotiate the terms. AND he will extend His power to you so nothing can stand in your way. Look at verse 5: “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Do you believe that? Jesus didn’t save you for you to walk around on your own. Jesus saves so you can participate with Him on the mission of God. Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to bring a little of the kingdom here. It’s to bring heaven to the places you live, work and play so that more may want to be a part of the great redemption of all of humanity. It is the plan. The verses scream of God’s promise, power and plan. A simple plan just not an easy one. Don’t forget: simple, not easy. It’s straightforward but it will require a little moxie on your part. Take a listen.
7 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:7-9
There are those words. “Be strong and VERY courageous.” Underline and highlight the word :very” in your Bible. The plan is simple. It’s not easy. Easy would mean everyone who hears Good News of Jesus would submit and commit without a second thought.However, that is not what happens. When we try to walk and talk about the message of Jesus, the world will rebel against us because we are proposing an alternative viewpoint. A viewpoint to some which seems like fake news. “How can it be that God lives and wants a relationship with us?” They retort and then ask,how can we be sure it's God? They often will point to some limited knowledge of God, the scriptures and even question your intelligence. So what are we to do? Look to verse 8:
Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.
We are to faithfully follow the dictates of the scriptures to lead our lives. Our role is not to convince, debate, curse or dispute their beliefs but stand in ours. When doubt is brought, we are to overcome and remember the ultimate defense. The one every good Jew repeats day and night.
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[a] 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Duet 6:4-6
The SHEMA is a powerful reminder of the promise, power and the plan. It's also a call to strive to get to know God more. What are the commandments? How do I apply them in my own life? What have others done before me? The answers to these and many other questions are found in the Bible. There is an acronym for the Bible - Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. It really does speak to and give directions to a great deal of life.
I remember the first time I acquired a piece of IKEA furniture. It looked so great in the store. The price was incredible and I could take it home right away if I were willing to assemble it myself. How hard could it be, right? I can remember struggling through the first set of hieroglyphics and almost completely finishing the desk and file drawer, only to realize I had put the drawer side and the back on, in reverse. I then had to go back and undue everything I did. Forget about all the second drillings. I was so proud at the end when I finally called Diane in to see it. She gave me the atta boy I was looking for and then asked about the extra pieces. I made some excuses and she inquired if I followed all the directions. “Huh? I don’t need directions.” Little did I know the pieces missing were the drawer stabilizers for the attached file and without them the desk would not hold together long. Eventually, I would need to rework the entire project and when we moved the last time, I ended up scrapping the whole cabinet and buying a metal one at Staples. I wonder how long the cabinet and desk would have lasted if I had taken a little more time understanding the process of creating a usable desk.
Have you ever heard someone talk about God only to realize they hadn’t ever taken the time to fully explore God? They could describe God but had never participated with God. They had never tried to understand the connection.They didn’t know how to experience real joy or contentment or understand personal finances as a tool for getting to know God. They hadn’t wrestled with the why God made us sexual and emotional. Why there are differences between men and women. They didn’t even know surrendering to God doesn’t mean defeat but moving over to the winning side.
The Bible exists to inform you about the nature of God, his love and his guidance so you can be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy in the next. The bible is a guide for you, not a manual of restrictions.
I love the Alpha story of the thief who comes to the ornate church for confession. He sits outside the confession box crying until it's his turn. He reads the 10 commandments and cries. He has broken them all. After he shares the details of a life of crime, he is given absolution and penance. He exits the box and begins to pray. He continues to cry, even sob uncontrollably. After a few hours, the priest emerges and walks over to the man. He reiterates God’s forgiveness and grace because he believes the man is full of shame and guilt. The thief responds, “Father, I’m not crying because of what I have done. I am crying because of what God has done. I now understand God had given the commands to protect me from the pain of this life. The commands are given in love. Like guardrails on the road of life. God loves me because he wants to protect me. Jesus coming, dying and rising is for my unwillingness to obey. My only regret is I didn’t see this earlier. Is there more in the book?”
No other book provides a greater impact on your life. God’s word as recorded in the scriptures will alter everything, from your viewpoint to your actions. However, spiritual growth is a choice. We must choose to grow.
So how are we to implement this teaching onto our own life.
1) Pray for a desire for a hunger for His word.
-If I told you the secrets to connecting with the creator of the universe were found in an ancient set of writings that I just discovered, would you read it?
2) Give it try - read a chapter a day, listen and watch
- Did you know the entire bible can be read aloud in 70 hours?
- Did you know over 168K bibles are distributed everyday in America?
3) Share it by impress it on others, simple wisdom
- Did you know there are 31 proverbs and reading one chapter a morning will take less than 5 min?
