Do you know how much Jesus loves you? Do you understand, He knows you by name and He has called you to be His for a purpose? Today the buses are rolling, mommas and daddy's are getting themselves ready for a hard days work and getting their little ones ready for their first day of the new school year. As your day progresses I would ask you to say a prayer for the school men and women that will transport, feed, teach, and most importantly love your children, grandchildren, friends and love ones today. May the love of Jesus Christ abound and may the power and love of Jesus be ever present.

May you go 
Jesus goes out before you.

John 10:4 And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.

A.   Your pathway is not by chance.

B.   Be Strong and of Good Courage…RAK CHAZAK

Deuteronomy 31:6-8 Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.” 7 Then Moses called Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and of good courage, for you must go with this people to the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall cause them to inherit it. 8 And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”


Because your pathway is not by chance, but is directed by a Jesus, be of good courage. Do not fear! Trust in His protection, guidance, leadership and love. Whatever your task today, I pray that you will do what God has called you  to do. Be willing to step out, driven by the understanding that Jesus is out before you, He is taking the blows clearing the path so you can follow. The only thing that gets to you is what Jesus knows you can handle. You simply have to follow Him. You can do it, if you keep your eyes on Jesus. Today, be about your Father's business. Today, live with the power that is inside you. Whatever God is calling you to, He will see you through. He will lead, guide and direct! You must follow, be guided and step in His direction. BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS! RAK CHAZAK!

RAK CHAZAK,
Brother Big Daddy 

Joshua 18:1-8 
New King James Version (NKJV)


1Now the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of meeting there. And the land was subdued before them. 2 But there remained among the children of Israel seven tribes which had not yet received their inheritance.

3 Then Joshua said to the children of Israel: “How long will you neglect to go and possess the land which the Lord God of your fathers has given you? 4 Pick out from among you three men for each tribe, and I will send them; they shall rise and go through the land, survey it according to their inheritance, and come back to me. 5 And they shall divide it into seven parts. Judah shall remain in their territory on the south, and the house of Joseph shall remain in their territory on the north. 6 You shall therefore survey the land in seven parts and bring the survey here to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the Lord our God. 7 But the Levites have no part among you, for the priesthood of the Lord is their inheritance. And Gad, Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh have received their inheritance beyond the Jordan on the east, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave them.”

8 Then the men arose to go away; and Joshua charged those who went to survey the land, saying, “Go, walk through the land, survey it, and come back to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the Lord in Shiloh.” 9 So the men went, passed through the land, and wrote the survey in a book in seven parts by cities; and they came to Joshua at the camp in Shiloh. 10 Then Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the Lord, and there Joshua divided the land to the children of Israel according to their divisions.

Can you hear me now? Again a question we should ask ourselves each and everyday. Can I hear God? Do I hear my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ speaking to me boldly and powerfully about my inheritance? Have you started surveying your land? We find in verse 9 the men doing exactly what Joshua said do. Are you doing what the Lord has told you to do? Hey, I may not be Joshua, but I am who God has placed in your life right now to lead you and guide you spiritually. So listen and take a step of faith and obedience and just watch the beauty the arises. Have you began the evaluation of your life on a step by step, day by day basis. Are you seeing where Jesus is and is not in your life? I hope you understand the command came from Joshua to his people for their good. There was a promise land out there for them and there is a promise land out there for you. My prayer is that you inhabit the land. Seize this wonderful and beautiful life that Jesus Christ has for you and experience a love like you have never experienced. Mos importantly love like you have never loved. Freedom awaits. It is just waiting on your surrender. Do it! 

RAK CHAZAK,

Brother Big Daddy

Joshua 18:8-9

 

Then the men arose to go away; and Joshua charged those who went to survey the land saying, “Go, walk through the land, survey it, and come back to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the Lord in Shiloh.” 9 So the men went, passed through the land, and wrote the survey in a book in seven parts by cities; and they came to Joshua at the camp in Shiloh. 10 Then Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the Lord, and there Joshua divided the land to the children of Israel according to their divisions.

Today is day 3 of, “can you hear me now.” Again it is a question that you should ask yourself each and everyday, can you hear God calling to you to grab your inheritance? Are you in His Word today and ready to take hold of the inheritance provided to you? We will not understand fully what Jesus has for us until we grasp the fact that we must study His Word. It is not optional and because you make it optional does not mean God makes it optional. Open His word and pour yourself into what He has for you. We see here in this scripture the importance of evaluating your land. To apply this to your life look at it like this, you have different areas in your life, evaluate them and see where Jesus is actively at work. Before you do anything meet with Jesus pray and ask Him to lead you as you begin this journey. Pray for spiritual eyes and a pure heart. Pray you see with eyes of truth and not eyes of selfishness and worldly ambitions. Pray that you see kingdom minded. Identify those areas that Jesus really has nothing to do with. Joshua told the men to write their survey down in a book. I think we should do the same. Those areas you identify that are really void or indifferent to Jesus, take action steps to incorporate Jesus into those areas. If you can’t include Jesus, then stop them. They can’t be good for you or your family. I don’t think you can do this in a day. Joshua told the men to walk through the land, it was a serious journey and one that required time and serious attention along with the effort of walking many many steps. So walk through you day each day surveying what is going on. Write things down along the way. Then, as Joshua commanded the men to bring him the surveys, take you surveys to Jesus Christ in prayer. Ask Jesus to show you what has to be done in each of your lands. Ask Him to reveal where He is not, where He is and how He can be incorporated in every area. Ask Jesus to show you what to stop and what to pursue. Then take the action steps required to do as He commands. This is not a simple task, but it is important if you want to inherit the abundant life. May you begin this journey with an open heart and a loving attitude. 

RAK CHAZAK,

Brother Big Daddy

Joshua 18:1
Now the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of meeting there. And the land was subdued before them. 2 But there remained among the children of Israel seven tribes which had not yet received their inheritance.

3 Then Joshua said to the children of Israel: “How long will you neglect to go and possess the land which the Lord God of your fathers has given you? 

So today is day two of, "can you hear me now?" That is the question that you need to ask yourself each and every day. Are you hearing God through His Word? Are you tapping into the greatest life you could imagine? Are you grabbing your inheritance by grabbing the Word of God and walking with Jesus Christ daily. Well Joshua is pretty much requiring this from his people, and I think we should require from ourselves. Take the scripture and inherit the abundant life, walking them daily. Joshua says to his people ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! I say to you ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!. Let us live the life that Jesus has for us, and stop wandering around in the wilderness looking for direction when the direction is in our very presence. God's Word will lead us and shape us. 


Joshua says, it is time you go to work and I am going to help you, and lead you into the gift you have been given. 

Joshua 18:4
4 Pick out from among you three men for each tribe, and I will send them; they shall rise and go through the land, survey it according to their inheritance, and come back to me.

I charge you today, take a survey of your land. Take a good hard look at it and be prepared to do what Jesus tells you to do. So today, survey your day to day and answer the question, what keeps me from studying God's Word? What keeps me from my inheritance? Is it the TV? Is it sleep? Is it my worry? Softball? Children? Husband? Wife? Job? Whatever it is, begin making adjustments in your life today to open the door to a new way of living. You may have to get up earlier because you are a mother and you have to provide for your children. You may have to start taking your lunch to work so you can get off to yourself and have sone quiet time with the Lord. You may have to turn the TV off and open the Word of God. But if you are going to simply sit here and talk about what you can't do, then don't do it, but live with the consequences. Not just the ones you can see today, but the ones that last an eternity. The souls of those around you that love you and believe in you and follow you. Eternity should be a driving force in your life and destination Heaven should be your hearts desire, but your love for Jesus Christ and the greatest gift ever imagined, your salvation,  should be is a driving force in your life and the unstoppable commitment to walk worthy of His calling.

RAK CHAZAK,

Brother Big Daddy