Joshua understood that he could not fulfill his divine mission in his own, natural strength. He realized what we often do not—that to conquer the enemies that were occupying his Promised Land, he would have to clothe himself with the power of God. He’d have to learn how to think like God, talk like God, and act like God.
Joshua knew that only in God’s Word would he find the wisdom he needed to succeed.
If we want to take our Promised Land, we must know that too. We must follow Joshua’s example and get serious—very serious—about God’s Word. We must pay extra attention to verses like these:
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper. (Psalm 1:1 – 3)
As wise stewards of our hearts, we must beware of slipping into a state of complacency where God’s Word is concerned. We must be ever mindful that meditating on the Word day and night is what prepares us to prosper and increase.
Using our Bible daily as we would use a mirror to see what adjustments we need to make in our lives is what expands our capacity to be blessed. That’s why, as James 1:22 – 25 says, we must “receive with meekness the implanted word,” which is able to save our souls.
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
“But, Lynne,” you might say, “I know what the Bible says. I’ve read it since I was a child.”
Even so, you need to keep on reading it because the Bible is unlike any other book. It’s not like a history book or a science book. It’s not even like a good how-to book.
Although it’s made up of words on a page and looks much like other books, the Bible’s words are different. They contain the very life of God. He has breathed into them His own essence and infused them with the divine energy that transforms us and causes us to grow.
Hebrews 4:12 says it this way: “… the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]…” (Amp). That Word is to us, as it was to Joshua, our supernatural secret of success.
Scripture Reading: Joshua 1:1 – 9
On the chilly March night in 1972 when Lynne Hammond took her first step into a life of Spirit-led prayer, she had no idea what was about to happen. All she knew was the hunger in her heart for God wouldn’t let her sleep. In the few short months she’d been born again, her desire to fellowship with Him had grown so strong she could hardly contain it. “Help me, God!” she cried. “I want to know you. I want to be able to talk to you. Please, teach me to pray!”
Suddenly, a heavenly presence flooded the room. Lynne sensed waves of spiritual fire sweeping over her and a beautiful language began to flow like a river from within her. Although she’d never heard of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, she knew instantly, without a doubt—this was God!
What began that night soon blossomed into a life of prayer that ultimately became a ministry of prayer when, in 1980, Lynne and her husband, Mac, founded Living Word Christian Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Under Lynne’s leadership, the prayer ministry at Living Word has become an internationally recognized model for developing effective pray-ers in the local church.
A teacher and an author, Lynne publishes a newsletter called Prayer Notes, has written numerous books, and currently serves as the national prayer director for Daughters for Zion. Her passion for inspiring and leading others into the life of Spirit-led prayer continues to take her around the world to minister to believers whose heart cry, like hers, is “Lord, teach me to pray!”