Make your way prosperous!

‘Be strong (confident) and of good courage, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.

Only you be strong and very courageous, that you may do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.

This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success.

Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.’

Joshua 1:6-12 AMPC

What comes out of your mouth, for the good or the bad, given time will eventually create a pathway for your heart to follow!

You can’t change your own heart, and God won’t change your mind, it’s called free will! But if you change your thoughts, God will change your heart!

‘Strip yourselves of your former nature [put off and discard your old unrenewed self] which characterized your previous manner of life and becomes corrupt through lusts and desires that spring from delusion.

And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude],

And put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God’s image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness’. Ephesians 4:22-24 AMPC

Joshua had lost his mentor, Moses, God was saying to him, it’s time to pick up your mantle and lead the people into the promised land.

In effect he was telling Joshua that despite his grief to rehearse, speak out everything that God had spoken concerning the nation. To repeat the words that God spoke to Moses. To keep them coming out of his mouth day and night, then he would make his way prosperous.

I have lost count of the times when the thoughts in my head have been anything but encouraging! There have been times when fear has run rampant, when the enemies voice was ringing loud and clear inside my head. When I had lost vision and forgot that the greater one lives on the inside of me. I had forgotten who I was and what authority and anointing I walked in. Our greatest battles are the ones in our minds. You get made redundant, or some other bad news, the enemy comes immediately to tell you how worthless you are, ‘you’ll never work again at your age’, ‘That cough, it’s lung cancer, no hope for you.’

I have lost count of the devil’s accusations towards me and concerning others!

‘……..He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies’. John 8:44 NLT

‘ The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it (overflows)’.

John 10:10AMPC

If you don’t know God’s word, then it is very difficult to counter his lies. If you aren’t convinced of God’s goodness, if you don’t know your identity in Him or your purpose, fulfilling why you’re here, you can become a victim of a culture that talks and expects doom and gloom, and guess what? That mindset will reap a harvest, but it won’t be the harvest you want!

Our job is to renew our minds.

‘ Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].’ Romans 12:2 AMPC

This isn’t a difficult task, because we can read the bible or listen to it with the Holy Spirit, He’s our teacher, He inspired what men wrote throughout the bible. Join a good bible believing Church where the word of God is taught, find a great group of Christians who are mature and ask your questions.

Questions that are asked in an atmosphere of trust lead to revelation.

Do you remember being at school and hoping someone other than you would ask the question that you were desperate to ask? I do, but on so many occasions the person who asked was made to feel silly and dumb by the way the teacher responded, which in turn caused the rest of the class to ridicule you and you determined never to ask or volunteer to answer a question again! Why? Because you didn’t feel safe! No one likes to be ridiculed especially when they have made an effort to participate in the lesson. Ridicule is the fastest way to shut down someone.

We can feel like that as Christians, especially as new believers. The Holy Spirit is the greatest teacher, with the utmost patience and He knows how to explain things to us that thrills our hearts.

When I first became a Christian I had a real problem with why it was wrong to have pre-marital sex. People just kept telling me ‘Because the bible say’s so.’ No one was explaining why the bible said that. I also had difficulty believing abortion was wrong. Back in the 80’s there wasn’t the scans we have now or all the medical information. I grew up in a culture of this is the norm!

I spent many hours reading God’s word and spending time with the Holy Spirit, in the first few week of my new found faith I must have read more than 20 books about the Holy Spirit, so I decided to ask Him to help me understand why these things were harmful and wrong.

He never condemned me, He lovingly explained to me how pre-marital sex caused damage to my soul, the power of wrong soul ties and so many other reasons as well. The same with abortion, He opened my eyes to the ways he loves us and wanting the best possible lives for us. Not only was my mind renewed but my heart was changed, I could see from His perspective how a life lived outside of Him was only a shadow of the abundant life of John 10:10!

I didn’t want to be a victim of the natural culture around me.

My mind was renewed, I could embrace His teaching. I loved Him and so His word would be the final authority in my life. There have been times when I have seen things in the bible, not fully understanding it, but made the choice to be obedient to the word, putting my faith in Him knowing best!

I want my life to be a testimony and illustration of God’s goodness!

Back to Joshua!

Who determines your level of prosperity?

According to the book of Joshua we do. The word we declare, meditate on determines our prosperity, and I’m not talking about financial prosperity here, though it is part of our inheritance.

‘Let them shout for joy and be glad, who favour my righteous cause; And let them say continually, “Let the Lord be magnified, who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant.” Psalm 35:27 NKJV

“And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. “Deuteronomy *:17-18 NKJV

When God speaks a word to you, memorise it, say it out loud, repeat it as you drive, prophecy it, come into agreement with Him.

Take the word of the Lord and aggressively declare it. What happens when you do that, it affects what you think about, it affects you in a righteous way.

This word of the Lord shall not depart from your mouth, some might say this sounds like a formula; however, it is the word of the Lord and it does produce results! The life is in the seed, the seed is the word of God!

The more we rehearse and declare His word, it affects our dreams, our thinking, giving the Holy Spirit the opportunity to create in us or through us the reality of what we are declaring!

The God of the impossible lives inside you and he’s not just interested in getting you into heaven, he’s interested in getting heaven into you. Getting something into you that will change the culture around you.

As you meditate on the word, then you will make your way prosperous, with wisdom and good success. It goes on to say:

'Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.’

It’s a command and not a suggestion! In the yielding comes the assurance of receiving fully what he has promised. There are adventures waiting for you in your promised land.

A good man eats good from the fruit of his mouth, but the desire of the treacherous is for violence. Proverbs 13:2AMPC

A man’s [moral] self shall be filled with the fruit of his mouth; and with the consequence of his words, he must be satisfied [whether good or evil].

Proverbs 18:20 AMPC

Your voice is a gift from God. Use it!