Joshua (Bible #6), ESV

This is one of my favorite books of the Bible. Why? It's radical and full of God's power. I love the devotion Joshua felt and expressed toward God, that he would follow his Lord into the great unknown and take possession of the Promised Land despite the numerous and vast enemies that set out against him. I like that Joshua relied on God to be his Strength in the battle. Of course seeing the fulfillment of the promises God had made to Moses – to give the children of Israel the Promised Land – was amazing; it is every time I read this book, and that reminds me that God will also fulfill the promises He's made to me. There's so much encouragement there!

What really stood out to me this time, as I was reading through the somewhat monotonous account of the division of land among the tribes of Israel – all the city names and boundaries to each plot of land – was that God makes a specific place in this world for each of His children. He has our place all picked out and designed to the nth degree. He loves us that much, y'all. It blows me away to think that the great God I serve loves me so much that He carefully designs every detail of my life. To me, that isn't overbearing at all; it's a beautiful expression of His immense love for me. Y'all, I got the good kind of chills when I realized this while reading Joshua, and I'm getting the good kind of chills all over again now that I'm typing this up. God blesses us so abundantly and in such monumental detail, and that is an exquisite thing indeed.

In the final two chapters of the book, it was clear to me that Joshua was leaving behind a legacy of determination to obey God. What a legacy to leave behind for the next generation! Oh, to be so blessed. It was also clear that the children of Israel were to remember what God had done for them and to share that with future generations. That got me thinking: How may I get determined to obey God no matter what, and how may I remember and share with future generations what God has done for me? I'll be thinking on these things for years to come, and I'll be applying what God shows me along the way.

I love it when a fifth, tenth, twentieth read of a book still impacts me the same or even better than the first time I read it. Joshua is like that for me. I get something new from it every single time.

I was not compensated for my honest review.