In Us We Trust

We used to believe in God's power and might.

The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they camped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. Those twelve stones, which they had taken out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal, saying to the Israelites, "When your children ask their parents in time to come, 'What do these stones mean?' then you shall let your children know, 'Israel crossed over the Jordan here on dry ground.' For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you crossed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we crossed over, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, and so that you may fear the Lord your God forever." When all the kings of the Amorites beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites by the sea, heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan for the Israelites until they had crossed over, their hearts melted, and there was no longer any spirit in them, because of the Israelites. While the Israelites were camped in Gilgal they kept the passover in the evening on the fourteenth day of the month in the plains of Jericho. On the day after the passover, on that very day, they ate the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. The manna ceased on the day they ate the produce of the land, and the Israelites no longer had manna; they ate the crops of the land of Canaan that year. Once when Joshua was by Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing before him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went to him and said to him, "Are you one of us, or one of our adversaries?" He replied, "Neither; but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and he said to him, "What do you command your servant, my lord?" The commander of the army of the Lord said to Joshua, "Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy." And Joshua did so. - Joshua 4:19-5:1,10-15

If a river dried up, it was God's hand that did it, and it was for a reason.

God is always with His people and will raise a hand to help them when they need it in service to Him.

The key here is the reason God does these things.  He has a plan in mind, something that requires our involvement.

But we no longer see God this way.  We trust in our own actions and judgment first, and that isn't how it is supposed to work.

What if we don't have to worry about climate change?

I know how that sounds.  We are all in a panic that we have caused irreversible damage to the planet, so much so that even God cannot help us.

But God has intervened to help us before.  Wouldn't He do it again?

I saw a post recently from someone in a panic about carbon emissions, convinced that unless we all stop eating meat, we will kill this planet.

To prepare for my radiation treatment for prostate cancer, I was told that I have to limit my intake of foods that will cause gas to build up in my system.

I expected to read that I can't eat meat, since that is what people are saying, but I was told to stay away from broccoli, kale, and other gassy foods.  Not meat.

I get it that it is not my gas that people are up in arms over, but the cows, chickens, goats, lambs, and just about any animal that grazes.

But if we stop eating them, won't we have a lot of cows roaming around anyway, like in India?

I think we need to stop, be still, and know that God is with us.

He has the answers we don't have.

I am a firm believer in the power of science and technology, and man's ability to find solutions to problems.  But I know when the problem is out of our realm we can turn to God for help.

So, before we all make radical changes and start a war with our neighbors in a panic over our extinction, maybe we can talk about this and invite God into the conversation.

He sent someone to help Joshua.

More to come...