Joshua 9-12: The Lord Is Fighting for Israel

I have a tendency to limit God.  We so seldom see him move with the power that was exhibited in the Old and New Testaments that it is an easy thing to do.  Aside from earthquakes and tsunamis, today God's power is seldom seen, at least not like it was when the children of Israel fought the Amorites and. The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the LORD listened to a man. Surely the LORD was fighting for Israel! - Joshua 10:13-14 NIV

But even now, the Lord is fighting for Israel.  What has the promise of becoming a more frightening situation for Israel, is still ordained by God.  In addition to causing the sun to stand still, God has a history of toppling kings, or hardening the hearts of pharaoh's. 

We're going back to Israel in five weeks.  I suppose we should be anxious, but we are not.  What better place to be should the worst happen?  God has a history of delivering his people by unconventional means.  There is no reason to think the same won't happen this time.  In Israel, we will once again visit at least one 'Tell', the remains of ancient civilizations, some of which consist of over 20 different layers.  The sun has risen and set on all of those different civilizations, yet God's people have been preserved and are once more back in the land of their ancestors.  Think of all God has seen them through:  the Exodus, the capture of Canaan, the building of the great temple and city of Jerusalem, being forced into exile in Babylon, conquered by the Romans, Byzantines, Muslims and Crusaders and finally the Holocaust.  God's eye is still on his people, the same God that caused the sun to stay still for a full day.  He's still in control and the more desperate the situation, the more his power can be displayed. 

2010 Post - Joshua 9-12:  Rest from War