Ezra 4:1-6

The adversary – the enemy, the foe, – heard that the people were building a temple to the Lord (v 1).

The enemy knows when we desire to do things for the Lord.

Maybe we want to quit that bad habit.

Perhaps we want to be more serious about our faith.

Or it could be that we feel led to serve in a certain way.

It could be that we are called to forgive or seek forgiveness.

Maybe – we are just trying to trust Him more.

Whatever the case – the enemy is aware of it. He doesn’t like it and he will try to stop it.

Five Ways the Adversary Attempts to Stop You

1. He will try to deceive you (v 2).

It’s the garden all over again. It’s lying and twisting of words. He will pretend to be on your side, in your corner, just one of the gang.

2. He will try to discourage you (v 4).

He will try to convince you that it’s pointless. Things will never change. You will never change. It is what it is and it can never be anything else.

3. He will try to scare you (v 4).

What if you’re wrong? What if you fail? What will people think? It will never work. Who do you think you are?

4. He will try to frustrate you and your efforts (v 4).

It will be too hard. It will take too long. You’re not smart enough, strong enough, good enough, etc.

5. He will wrongfully accuse you (v 6).

He will question your motives, your ability to discern God’s will, interpret God’s Word. He will attempt to shame you with reminders of things of which you’ve already been forgiven.

The enemy is crafty but he isn’t creative. Same old boring bag of tricks. But he keeps using them because they keep working.

👉 Here is an easy way to know if what you’re thinking is direction from the Lord or deception from the enemy.

Deception, discouragement, fear, frustration, and shame are always from the enemy. [Someone needs to hear this today.]

Psalm 145:17 tells us that the Lord is righteous in everything he does and is filled with kindness.

The Lord is for you, friends. He is for you.

You are loved.

#ezra #biblejournaling #biblestudy #bible #biblejournalingcommunity #biblejournalinglife #biblejournal #biblejournalingbrasil #god #christian #christianauthors #christianblogger #biblestudytips

Joshua 23-24

👉 What should we remember when facing a battle?

The Lord fights for you (Joshua 23:3, 10).

The Lord is faithful to you (Joshua 23:5, 10, 14).

👉 What should we do when facing a battle?

• obey the Lord (Joshua 23:6)
• cling to the Lord (Joshua 23:8 )
• love the Lord (Joshua 23:11)

Are you weary?

Are you discouraged?

Are you hurting?

Just keep obeying.

Keep clinging.

Keep loving.

The Lord is faithful to fight on behalf of his children.

You are loved.

#joshua #biblejournaling #biblestudy #bible #biblejournalingcommunity #biblejournalinglife #biblejournal #biblejournalingbrasil #god #christian #christianauthors #christianblogger #biblestudytips

Joshua 14

🌸 A character study of Caleb.

Caleb:

• was 40 years old when he spied out the promised land for Moses (v 7)

• gave a faithful report to Moses when the others gave a fearful one (v 7)

• wholly followed the Lord (v 8 )

• because of his faithfulness, Moses promised him a portion of the land as an inheritance for his children forever (v 9)

• gave God the glory for keeping him alive for the 45 years following the deliverance of the people of Israel (v 10)

• was as strong at 85 years old as he was at 40 years old (v 11)

• asked Joshua for the land promised him (v 12)

• was given Hebron by Joshua because of his faithfulness to the Lord (v 13)

I love the faithfulness of Caleb. And this reminder that the Lord is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him (Hebrews 11:6).

Happy Friday, friends. You are loved.

#joshua #faithfulness #biblejournaling #biblestudy #bible #biblejournalingcommunity #biblejournalinglife #biblejournal #biblejournalingbrasil #god #christian #christianauthors #c

Joshua 9:1-10:15

Sometimes, there isn’t a huge application to be made from a passage. In the first picture, you’ll see an example of me doing a simple story board.

The Gibeonites heard about the battle victories the people of Israel were experiencing and they were afraid. So, they lied about their identity and their location.

Some interesting facts:
• the Gibeonites were described as cunning
• Joshua did not seek counsel from the Lord
• the people of Israel were deceived

[It reminded me somewhat of the garden of Eden. The serpent was described as crafty. Eve did not seek counsel and was deceived.]

The story gets really interesting, however, when we learn more about the Gibeonites in chapter 10 (second picture).

Gibeon:

• was a great city
• like a royal city
• greater than Ai
• all its men were warriors

This great city filled with warriors feared the people of Israel and the God who fought on their behalf. This fear caused them to deceive and manipulate.

The cowardice of these men stands in stark contrast to the courage of Rahab in a previous chapter. Rahab – not a warrior but a prostitute – also heard about the mighty God of the people of Israel. Her fear of the Lord caused her to – not deceive – but declare her belief in God.

I love the upside downness of God’s kingdom where warriors who lie become servants and prostitutes who profess faith are in the lineage of Christ.

#joshua #exegesis #rahab #biblejournaling #biblestudy #bible #biblejournalingcommunity #biblejournalinglife #biblejournal #biblejournalingbrasil #god #christian #christianauthors #christianblogger #biblestudytips

Joshua 5:1-15

The people were told to tell what God had done for them. And when they did – look what happened.

Kings – near and far – heard what God had done for his people and they no longer had the heart or the spirit to fight against the people of Israel (v 1).

The people obeyed – they shared their stories of deliverance – and the enemy fled.

👉 Some of us are entertaining the enemy because we have forgotten our deliverance. We need to testify to the goodness of our God.

How do we entertain the enemy? I’m so glad you asked. Look what the Lord told Joshua.

“Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you” (v 9).

[ reproach = shame, derision, ridicule, disgrace ]

When he delivered them – he rolled away all of it.

👉 Our redemption includes a rolling away of our shame.

So – when we hold on to shame and disgrace because of our former lives – we are entertaining the enemy.

When those feelings of guilty try to weigh us down – we need to remember that the Lord himself has rolled it away.

You are loved.

#joshua #redemption #biblejournaling #biblestudy #bible #biblejournalingcommunity #biblejournalinglife #biblejournal #biblejournalingbrasil #god #christian #christianauthors #christianblogger #biblestudytips