No longer ill-equipped

Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. (Joshua 1:8)

We cannot neglect the Word of God and expect good things to happen in our lives. We need the intake of his Word for our spirit as much as we need food and water for our bodies. As Joshua was being 'commissioned' by God to take the Israelite nation into the Promised Land of Canaan, he gives him the instruction to STUDY his words CONTINUALLY. In other words, do more than a casual reading of them - let them soak into the very fibers of one's life until that life becomes affected by their intake. It is more of a mediation - to think deeply and frequently about what God has said. Whenever we allow the Word of God to be 'mulled over' in our minds, we are allowing it to be 'continually' studied. It helps us stay focused on what God is saying to us, and it often will 'open us' to what it is he wants to be doing within us.

The more we spend time getting to know God's Word, the more we have the necessary resources to repel the lies of our enemy. We recognize a lie because we know the truth. How can we expect to ward off the enemy's lies if we never get to know God's truth? Remembering that our enemy's lies are entirely 'untruth' and that they contain some element of truth within them, we must be wise to discern between what is truth and what is fiction meant to lead us astray. We only get to that point when we allow God's Word to get into us. They are more than words on a page - they are protective ammunition against evil attack!

The word 'continually' refers to this idea of meditating on God's Word. Ruminating on it allows it to be digested slowly, getting each and every aspect of its richness built into our lives. This continual rumination of his Word actually has a purpose - to lead our steps in obedience to what he asks of us. The Israelites had not gone that way before. They didn't know all they'd face. Yet, they weren't going in blindly. They had God's Word as their defense against whatever they'd face ahead of them. We need that defense, too. I challenge you to get out that Bible, dust off its cover, and open its pages. Do so with the desire to learn what he says to you, and you will never be ill-equipped when your enemy comes with his lies. Just sayin!