[A Meditation on One Verse]

(Joshua 18:3) “So Joshua said to the Israelites: ‘How long will you wait before you begin to take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your ancestors, has given you?’”

After the tabernacle was set up at Shiloh and the great wars had ended, a strange silence fell over Israel. Even though seven tribes had not yet received their inheritance, no one was making a move. Then, Joshua’s frustrated rebuke pierces them to the core: ”How long will you wait?”

Why did they delay? They likely had ‘rational’ reasons. The remaining land might have been rugged hill country, and powerful natives might still have been holding out there. The fear of potential defeat, a sense of security from living in the established safe zones (the territories of other tribes), the overwhelming feeling of not knowing where to begin—all of these things would have become ‘reasons for delay,’ holding them back.

But right at that moment, God comes to them. He comes to where they are sitting idly and begins to work. The Lord not only awakens them with a rebuke but also invites them again into the great journey of fulfilling His promise. Before this divine invitation, Israel’s steps change. It is no longer an inaction based on their own rational reasons but a step of faith, trusting in the God who would finally fulfill His promise through them. And what happens then? Without a trace of the many ‘rational reasons’ that had bound them, they immediately rise and obey.

This is our hope, for you and for me. In our lives, too, there are countless ‘reasons for delay.’ Fear, uncertainty, and a sense of complacency that ‘this is good enough’ tie our feet. But when God’s word comes and His work begins, all those reasons lose their power. Therefore, what moves us is not our own courage, but the grace of God who comes to us, speaks to us, and opens the way.

[Prayer]

”Lord, may my ‘steps today’ be taken in trust of You, the one who personally sets and guides all the boundaries of my life.”

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(Daily Reading)

• Joshua 18:1-10