Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them. ‘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. 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. 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 1:6-9 NIVUK
While I was training to be a missionary, I met a young American family. They appeared to have it all: they were great people, he was handsome and well-built; she was pretty. They looked like they would have a great effect on their chosen field of Poland. There was one problem, though: the husband could not roll his letter 'R's.
That's not a problem at all in America. It's quite an issue in parts of Europe. They were going to Poland, where the lack of a rolled, trilled 'R' would always sound foreign, no matter how he tried. But in Czech Republic, where we were training, it was absolutely fundamental. It was impossible to count to five without it ('jedna, dva, tri, ctry, pet'). You couldn't order hot dogs without mustard ('bez horcice') without it. Some place names and even the Czech Republic's most famous composer Dvorak use it.
He would really struggle.
Equally as fundamental as the sounds in any language is the grammar. And at the heart of any language is the verb 'to be'. I remember the days I spent with a grammar book reciting the conjugations of this verb in Romanian until it was drilled into my brain ('eu sunt, tu ești, el este, ea este, noi suntem, voi sunteți, ei sunt, ele sunt'). I can still remember and recite them, even years later.
In every language, 'to be' is a verb. It's a doing word. It's an action.
This simple, dry grammatical fact tells us something quite profound. To 'be' something you need to 'do' something. Nothing in life is ever achieved by sitting around and doing nothing. We cannot for one second expect to become someone without putting in the effort.
And that brings us to another quite startling conclusion: who we are is a choice. It is not inevitable. We are not victims of our circumstances. We are more than the product of our surroundings and upbringing. We can be much more than that.
We don't know very much about Joshua, except that he was the son of a man called Nun. His father's name means 'posterity'. Joshua's means 'the Lord saves'. He was born to an Ephraimite family in exile in Egypt.
And that's it. Nothing more.
But he seems to have been selected, likely when he was quite young (Exodus 33:11 indicates that he was likely a pre-teen boy) as Moses' assistant and then successor. The Bible doesn't tell us how or why he was selected. We just see this boy appearing as if from nowhere as Moses' assistant and then later leading the Israelites in their first battle.
We then fast forward to Joshua 1 and we see something that should take us by surprise. It isn't just God who tells Joshua to be 'strong and courageous'. No, it's the people who would follow him too (Joshua 1:18). It's almost as if they too recognise the awesome task before him and the possibility that he might be intimidated by it.
So why do both God and Joshua's people tell him to 'be' something: to be strong and courageous, to be careful to obey the law and to not be afraid or discouraged?
The answer is simple: Joshua had a choice. Just as he would later encourage the people to choose God (Joshua 24:15), Joshua had to choose, right at the beginning of his work, how he would react to the intimidating situation before him. He was not just choosing what he would do. No, he was choosing who he would be.
I have no doubt that for many of us 2022 will be a demanding year. There will be many choices to make and decisions to take. It's too easy to rush headlong into the year, blunder our way through life, and then, if we hurt anyone or break rules and get caught, excuse our misdeeds by saying 'Well, that's just who I am'.
Nonsense.
Character and personality can be changed. Indeed, they should be changed. They are not inevitable. Do not believe the outright lie that states we are nothing more than mechanical products of our DNA or our environment. That doctrine destroys human dignity and denies responsibility. If it was at all true, then every prison cell would have to be opened and every murder and rapist and pervert and terrorist would have to go free. Why? Because they could use the same pathetic excuses to escape responsibility for their crimes as we do.
No. The Bible teaches firmly that we are who we choose to be, and we can choose to be better. In fact, there are many, many instances where we are not told to do something, but to be something:
Moses answered the people, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.’
Exodus 14:13-14 NIVUK
He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.’
Psalms 46:10 NIVUK
These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
John 16:33 KJV
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
John 14:27 NIVUK
Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
Romans 12:16 NIVUK
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Romans 12:21 NIVUK
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
Ephesians 4:2 NIVUK
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Ephesians 4:32 NIVUK
Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.
Philippians 2:1-2 NIVUK
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Philippians 4:6 NIVUK
Often at this time of year our focus is on what we will do in the next year. We make plans and resolutions, but many of us set them aside within just a few days of the year starting and bumble on as before.
What we need is a change of focus. We need to stop thinking about what we will do and start to think about who we will be.
It's fine to have goals. It's a good thing. But if don't think about who we are, about our character and how we respond when life is the way it is, then we could pursue those goals 'at any cost' and leave a trail of brokenness and despair in our wake.
Joshua wasn't just being asked to take the Promised Land. He was also being asked to be someone - the specific someone the people needed him to be for the task to be completed. That someone had to be strong and courageous and not be intimidated by the giants in the land and the fortified cities they defended.
What about you? What situations will you face, both professionally, relationally and spiritually? What type of person do you need to be to meet those challenging situations successfully?
Those are tough questions. And we may not like the answers. When we're asked to change and grow and become better, more rounded people, then often the cry goes up, 'But it's just not me! Why can't I be good enough as I am?'
However, there is another way of looking at it. Butterflies begin as larvae, then seal themselves off as chrysalises, before emerging as butterflies. Grains, nuts and all kinds of plants and fruit begin life as a small seed, before growing in the dark earth and becoming something else.
Could it be that the demands on us to grow and change could be taking the fundamentals of who we are and the potential we have and then using it for a higher purpose? Could this be part of how God always works for our good (Romans 8:28)?
People are always willing to submit to change when they see the purpose is good. How many gym memberships were bought and diet plans submitted to at the turn of the year?
What would happen if, like Joshua, we were as determined to 'be' as much as to 'do': to be the kind of person God can use to change the lives of those around us?
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