Joshua 1:9

NASB	NLT	VOICE
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified nor dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”	9 This is my command – be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”	9 This is My command: be strong and courageous. Never be afraid or discouraged because I am your God, the Eternal One, and I will remain with you wherever you go.

Two things God commanded to be: strong and courageous! Two things God commanded to not be: afraid and discouraged. Today, we’re digging into what it means to be and not be these things.

STRONG (HEB. VERB – CHAZAQ (khaw-zak’): This word means to be strong, strengthen, harden, prevail, or take hold of. This is used to describe physical strength, emotional fortitude, and spiritual resilience. It’s strength that resides in us physically, strengthens us emotionally, and gives us the faith to continue spiritually. It can involve strengthening ourselves or others, surviving through battles, and holding on to something tightly. It involves encouragement, support, or reinforcement. This concept was the foundation of the Israelites’ relationship with God.

God wants us to be strong. To use the strength that he provides that lives within us to go out and follow the plan that he set before us. This strength allows us to hang on to provide an emotional foundation to handle and manage any chaos, anxiety, or panic that comes across our path. This strength allows us to walk through the battles of life and receive the motivation to continue forward on the path God created from us.

COURAGEOUS (HEB. VERB – AMETS (ah-mayts): This word means to be strong, courageous, firm, and strengthened. It’s used in contexts where people are encouraged to be resolute (determined) and steadfast (loyal), in time of challenges or oppositions.

God wants us to be courageous. We face many different forms of strife in life. A job that we feel undervalued and belittled in. A relationship we are feeling alone, shut out, or abused in. A parent who doesn’t hear us as a human and is trying to mold us to follow their plans instead of what our plans are. A child who has walked away from their faith and ignores any reach of compassion and love. You fill in the blank of what you are dealing with. God wants us to stay determined in the fight before us and loyal to his ways of living.

AFRAID (HEB. VERB – ‘ARATS (aw-rats): This word means to tremble, dread, or be terrified. It’s used in context of people that feel dread or trembling in the presence of impending danger. Fear in the Hebrew Bible often involved both reverential awe and terror. Think about Fear of God.

God doesn’t want us to be afraid. God doesn’t want us to be trembling or be terrified of what’s before us. God wants us to take our fear to him boldly and truthfully and hand it over to him. Allowing him to take that fear and flip it over to faith that his peace will arise and his justice will be served. Allowing him to love you through the fear, recognizing that God doesn’t look down at you for asking questions, having fears and doubts, and researching for answer with different people. God wants you to trust him, and lean on his wisdom, which is connected to the Fear of the Lord.

DISCOURAGED (HEB. VERB – CHATHAH (khaw-thath’): The word means to be shattered, dismayed, terrified, or broken. It talks about being broken both physically and emotionally. It’s used in the context of people being terrified or demoralized. The Israelites often faced threats from powerful nature, and the response to these threats was interpreted as their reflection of faith and trust.

When you face threats, how do you respond? Do you respond in a broken down, defeated, ready to give up mindset? Do you respond with anger, bitterness, and a fight from within that will allow you to continue to the other side? God doesn’t want us to give us, no matter how battered and bruised we are. God doesn’t want us to quit, no matter how mentally exhausted we can be. God doesn’t want us to be discouraged. God wants us to respond with his victory in our minds, strength in our hearts, and trust that we can get to the other side with his guidance.

Next slice of manna: Manna for the Mind #182