The Answer to Our Whys

Joshua 7:6-9: "Then Joshua tore his clothes, and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the LORD until evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust on their heads. And Joshua said, “Alas, Lord GOD, why have You brought this people over the Jordan at all—to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? Oh, that we had been content, and dwelt on the other side of the Jordan! O Lord, what shall I say when Israel turns its back before its enemies? For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear it, and surround us, and cut off our name from the earth. Then what will You do for Your great name?”

We've all been here. We tend to question God when things don't go according to what we have expected or prayed for. Just like Joshua, we felt that God was not a good planner. Because if He is, why would he bring destruction to us? Why would He allow us to get defeated? Or let's make it sound personal: Why didn't I get promoted? Why did I fail the job interview? Why did we brake up? Why did I fail the exam? Why didn't God answer my prayers? Why the God of love, allow me to experience such pain when all I did was to follow His voice? And there are lot more whys... I cannot write all of them here, because it might take me forever.

Our whys can be answered by God right after we have asked Him or after several years or when we are already face to face with Him (meaning, dead). But it will be answered and it will make sense. But to give you an idea why God allowed certain defeat or as if He had brought us destruction, allow me to continue the verse above. And here it goes:

Joshua 7:10-13: "So the LORD said to Joshua: “Get up! Why do you lie thus on your face? Israel has sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them. For they have even taken some of the accursed things, and have both stolen and deceived; and they have also put it among their own stuff. Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they have become doomed to destruction. Neither will I be with you anymore, unless you destroy the accursed from among you. Get up, sanctify the people, and say, ‘Sanctify yourselves for tomorrow, because thus says the LORD God of Israel: “ There is an accursed thing in your midst, O Israel; you cannot stand before your enemies until you take away the accursed thing from among you.”

Yes, we have read it right. Sin was the reason why Joshua and the troops were experiencing defeat from the enemy. We must remember that yes, God is love but also God is holy and just.

Let us also not miss out the detail that Joshua wasn't the one sinning here (at least here) but his troops. But he was affected of course.

I am not saying that sin is the answer to your 'why'. I am not in the position to tell that. Sin is just one of the reasons. And make sure that was not the answer behind your 'whys'. And if ever it is, God said "sanctify yourself". Surrender it, let it go...

If you want to go into details or know the whole story regarding the verses here, please do so. Open your Bible. You might find answer to your 'whys'. :D

Never go back to your Egypt

Deuteronomy 17:14-17

14 "When you come to the land which the Lord your God is giving you, and possess it and dwell in it, and say, 'I will set a king over me like all the nations that are around me,'

15 you shall surely set a king over you whom the Lord your God chooses; one from among your brethren you shall set as king over you; you may not set a foreigner over you, who is not your brother.
16 But he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, for the Lord has said to you, 'You shall not return that way again.'
17 Neither shall he multiply wives for himself, lest his heart turn away; nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself.

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The verses above were about the instructions of God to His people in choosing a leader or a king to govern them. He have set the standard and the qualifications. He also indicated some guidelines for the king. But what really caught my attention upon reading the words above was verse 16 and its last line: "You shall not return that way again.", And yes, it is talking about Egypt.

If you are familiar with the Bible and History, you already know that Israelites used to be slaves in Egypt. And God saved them and led them out of that place because He had made a covenant with Abraham. If you haven't heard about that, well, I suggest that you read the Bible (start from Genesis onward) because I won't be discussing about that, specifically in this post.

You can say that in this verse, God is literally reminding His people to never return to Egypt. But as I was meditating His Words, God made me realize something. Egypt also represents our previous life; our bondage; or maybe situation that God has already saved us from. And God is telling you, I mean telling me (because it was me who was reading His Words), to never return to my Egypt. And when He said "You shall not return that way again" He didn't mean your arrival again at Egypt, He is telling you that the moment you recognized that you  are heading your 'way' back at Egypt, you have to stop and turn your back. Because you are walking away to His promised land. You are walking away to His perfect plan for you! And you would never want that! I would never want that.

So whatever your Egypt is, please do not come back. Don't even try to place your feet on that way that will lead you back. Remember that God already took you and saved you out from that Egypt. Do not return.

I repeat, do not return to your Egypt.

He warns; He reminds

Many times in Deuteronomy, God warned His people not to forget God nor have other gods than Him.

He keeps on reminding His people to be cautious of their hearts and make sure that they are still serving the real and true God who saved them from Egypt.

The reminders and warnings are for us too - the ones who are reading the Word of God and the ones who are reading this. We should never forget the greatness of God in our lives when we are doing well in life. Oftentimes, we forget that we are in good shape or in good situation (whatever aspect in life it may be) because God brought us there. And because we are doing well, we become prone to focus more of our attention to the things that keep us away from God. And remember, anything that you prioritize before God, becomes your god. It falls under idolatry - whatever it is.

Let us think and re-evaluate our relationship with God. Are we still pleasing Him? Are you still giving glory to His name in everything you do? Is He still your priority?

He warned and reminded us many times. Yes, many times.

Check out some of these verses found in Deuteronomy for reference:

Deuteronomy 8:11-20

(NKJV)

11 “Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you today, 12 lest—when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them; 13 and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold are multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied; 14 when your heart is lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; 15 who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty land where there was no water; who brought water for you out of the flinty rock; 16 who fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might test you, to do you good in the end— 17 then you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.’

18 “And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. 19 Then it shall be, if you by any means forget the Lord your God, and follow other gods, and serve them and worship them, I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish. 20 As the nations which the Lord destroys before you, so you shall perish, because you would not be obedient to the voice of the Lord your God.

Deuteronomy 11:16-17

(NKJV)

16 “Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them, 17 lest the Lord’s anger be aroused against you, and He shut up the heavens so that there be no rain, and the land yield no produce, and you perish quickly from the good land which the Lord is giving you.

You may read the whole chapter of Deuteronomy for other verses containing God's warning and reminders. :D

Genuine Worship

This verse clearly states that our God is a jealous God. Therefore we should always check our heart if it is genuinely worshipping none other than the Lord our God.

We must remember that anything that comes first before God can be our god. Let us always put God above everything else.

He deserves the first place in our heart.

He deserves a genuine worship.