Joshua 1:1-5

After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' aide: "Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Great Sea [a] on the west. No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.

Taking on leadership role. Often we think that leadership is something big. Indeed, leadership is very important in the eyes of God. Paul said in 1 Timothy 3 that if anyone sets his heart on being an overseer, he desires a noble task. But leadership can be something as small as leading our own life or leading our family, instead of something very grandeur. It is something that I have to constantly remind myself about, that leadership in church is not only about rising up as whatever 'L' but it's really leading our own lives right before God.

Looking at Joshua, assuming Moses' role is a gigantic task, but the passage underlines one thing, that in order to accomplish any spiritual tasks, we need the divine commissioning of God. We need the presence of God. As Psalm 127 says, unless The LORD builds the house, the builders labour in vain. Yet I think I have to constantly be assured that God has already commissioned all of us to lead and have the spiritual authority to do His work, as mentioned in Mark 16 when Jesus told the disciples to go into all the world and preach the good news to all creations and in His name, we will drive out demons, speak in new tongues etc.

Moving from NUS to YG is a unique moment for me in my walk as a leader in God's Kingdom. I have to allow God to continuously speak into my life before I can really settle down myself to move over to YG. It has a challenge of itself, taking care of a transitional caregroup for a few weeks like that. Yet, along the way I was struck by the parable of the hidden treasure and the pearl:

"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.


That a man found a hidden treasure and the merchant found the pearl, they sold their 'everything' and the treasure and pearl became their 'everything'. Their lives became intertwined with God's Kingdom, just like how Joshua, being commissioned by God, had his life intertwined with God's purpose for the Israelites. God's promises to Joshua seems to apply very much in my life, that I want to be situated at the center of where He is acting and claim the lands that He is giving to me in YG, be it my marketplace or my ministry.

We need to realise that we are servants of God, and that where He places us, that's where He wants us to serve and advance His Kingdom. Asking myself and all people who are reading this post, are we feeling disgruntled by the changes recently, or do we want to adopt a new mindset and think how best we can advance God's Kingdom wherever we are?

That's why I am praying and promising God that I will serve in YG and contribute in whatever ways I can in YG. I pray that the brothers and sisters who are moving along will too. I pray that those who are staying on can continue to do great things for God too.

Tomorrow, more on Joshua and my thoughts on transitions. But next post, my new cg.

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