The battle, of course!
Y’all. Have you ever been in the middle of a battle, and it feels like a ten-year war? Like, there is no end in sight. Even if you know a victory is supposed to be coming, your faith can falter when faced with continued hardship. When I read about the battle with Ai, I was convinced it lasted longer than five minutes. I mean, the strategy was really cool. They lured their enemy out to the middle of nowhere, attacked the vulnerable city in the enemy’s absence, then turned around from their fake retreat to surprise the over-confident Ai in an ambush of epic proportion. It was awesome, but I don’t think it was speedy. I’m pretty sure it took some time. I would imagine there were moments where Joshua (in his humanness) worried about his soldiers. He probably cringed as the plan played out, perhaps mental fingers covering his hesitant eyes while they prepared to take the land of their enemy.
Joshua 8:25-26 (NIV)
25 Twelve thousand men and women fell that day—all the people of Ai. 26 For Joshua did not draw back the hand that held out his javelin until he had destroyed[a] all who lived in Ai.
The battle had continued, the enemy had been mighty, the way uncertain, the victory not yet complete, but do you know what Joshua had not done, despite the odds? He had not drawn back his hand. He held the javelin, pointed in the direction of God’s promise, until the war was won.
He had walked in faith, but more importantly, he had continued to walk in faith even as the battle waged on. So many times we find ourselves in situations that seem endless, the victory too far away to see. We get discouraged, and we don’t want to keep going. Our arms get tired. Our fears crowd in. We begin our battle in confidence, but it’s easy to draw back our hand when the going gets tough. We don’t hold out until the battle is complete. We draw back, and in doing so, we miss the promise of victory that God had in mind.
If you find yourself in a tough situation today, I would encourage you to hold out your javelin in faith. Point it towards the promise of victory that God gives. Don’t pull back your hand when the battle drags on, but instead hold steady in faith until God declares it done. Don’t miss the victory He has promised in your life. Don’t draw back your hand until the end.
