My Final Words

In his final days, Joshua called the people together at Shechem to remind them of their history. He told them again how God had called Abraham to the land of Canaan and “gave him many descendants.” (Joshua 24:3) He recalled how God used Moses and Aaron to led the people out of Egypt, and how God himself delivered their enemies into their hands, “So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.” (Joshua 24:13)

Joshua was echoing the words of his mentor, Moses:  

“The Lord your God will soon bring you into the land he swore to give you when he made a vow to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is a land with large, prosperous cities that you did not build. The houses will be richly stocked with goods you did not produce. You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant. When you have eaten your fill in this land, be careful not to forget the Lord, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt.” (Deuteronomy 6:10-12)

In both passages, you see that the emphasis was on the goodness of God and his love and compassion for his chosen people. God would care for them; however, to continue to enjoy the blessings, the people, in return, had to be faithful.

Yes, Joshua had seen with his own eyes how quickly people can turn from God to idols made from gold (Exodus 32), and so one last time, he called for the people to serve God:

“Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:14-15)

Joshua made it clear that the people of Israel had a decision to make and there was no middle ground. They could either serve the living God, or they could chase after the false little gods of the people around them. They each had to make up their own mind on how they would live going forward, but as for him, he would serve the Lord!

Powerful words, and I feel that it is a fitting place for us to come to today, because I too am coming to my final days at work. As I reflect back over the years, I remember the mountains that we climbed, the walls that came down, and the tears shed as we sat around the table in a crowded cafeteria talking about the God whom we love. From the very beginning, this was his creation and he has been with us each step of the way.

Yet with my retirement, this chapter is closing for me. I am passing the baton on to the next generation, and I cannot wait to see what God has planned for my faithful sisters and brothers. Over the years, I have clung to his promise that his word will never return empty (Isaiah 55:11), and even though I may never see the harvest, my prayer is that thirty years from now a group will still be meeting at lunch to study God’s Word together at Texas Farm Bureau!

I also want to let you know that after today, I will no longer post my weekly devotional. This blog was created for the Bible study and since I am stepping down from leading it, I have decided to take a break from writing. However, like Joshua, rest assured that I will never stop reading, learning about, and worshiping my heavenly Father.

It has indeed been an honor to walk alongside you on this journey, and I want to thank you for taking the time to read my attempts each week to put into words the things God has been teaching me. My goal has always been to draw people closer to Christ; however, I do want to apologize for any errors that I made not only grammatically, but also in theology. As my son, Colin, has pointed out, most people don’t intend to become a heretic. They just sometimes veer off on the wrong path in their attempts to explain who God is. With this in mind, I have always asked God to show me where my thinking was askew and to right any wrongs that I may have written or spoken.

So many thoughts fill my mind, but as this curtain draws to a close there is one thing I want you to know. I am still just a woman who is head over heels in love with her Savior. I am and will always be a Jesus Freak, and my prayer is that you will be one too.

Friends chose God - there is no better way!

For the glory of God our Father and his Son, Jesus Christ! 

Amen and so be it. Lisa

“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)