Following God can lead to small and large callings. For Joshua, it was no small feat. He was not only to be the leader of millions of people as they entered a new land but was also succeeding Moses. Moses - who led them for forty years, the one who spoke face to face with God, the one who delivered the plagues on Pharaoh, the one who delivered God's people from Egypt. (There is much written on Moses, read more of his story from Exodus to Deuteronomy.)

Thankfully for Joshua, God had a plan. Joshua had been Moses' aid for many years, learning directly from Moses while being given increased amounts of responsibility. Joshua was also one of two spies (along with Caleb) who believed God would deliver the land of Canaan to the Israelites and stood in opposition to the reports of the other 10 spies (Numbers 13:25-14:10).

There are many wonderful lessons from Joshua's life but today the focus is what he did before crossing into the promised land. At the edge of the promised land near the Jordan river, the excitement was incredibly high. The people had been waiting many years to see the land and take possession. As a young leader, it would have been very enticing to gain the people's favor by rushing in without waiting. However, in Joshua 3:9 we read, "Joshua said to the Israelites, "Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God."" Before diving in, Joshua made the people wait and listen to the Lord's message and to remind the people of His presence.

Life moves fast and new tasks can be daunting. It is always wise to begin in the Lord's presence through prayer and listen to his word.

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