Reading Joshua

Wow.

Just finished reading/studying the book of Joshua.  I am amazed, challenged, full of thought.

How does a girl choose to read an Old Testament book about war and conquering and judgment?  I've had a distant interest in the book of Joshua for over a year, starting with the story of the Israelites standing in the Jordan, then studying the story of memorial stones (chapters 3 and 4).

But I got restarted thinking about Joshua after reading A.W. Tozer's The Pursuit of God last fall.  In a totally spirit-led moment, this small paragraph jumped off the page for me, based of of Joshua 13:33:

"When the Lord divided Canaan among the tribes of Israel, Levi received no share of the land.  God said to him simply, 'I am thy part and thine inheritance,' and by those words made him richer than all his brethren, richer than all the kings and rajas who have ever lived in this world."  (page 14) 

For some reason, God has really impressed upon my heart the idea of a Levitical inheritance...that His big dream for me is to need Him and Him alone, to rely on Him and Him alone for my life.  So this month I felt led to read the book of Joshua and really understand this idea.

So I read Joshua...a story full of battles, mistakes, of imperfect people who, like me, try to do things on their own strength instead of waiting on the Lord and asking for His guidance.  I learned to trust God's sovereignty, reading about Israel being commanded to kill completely the people living in Canaan - a challenge for those of us who hear more about God's love, grace, and mercy than his judgment.

I finally I got to the part about the inheritances of the tribes of Israel, and I realized how difficult, amazing, challenging was the inheritance of Levi.  I mean, each tribe's inheritance of land is listed in quite extensive detail, which could easily be boring to modern readers, but was so crucial to the people at that time. 

Amidst these long descriptions of land given to each tribe, the Levites are frequently reminded that they have no inheritance.  I imagine if I was a Levite, I would be getting a bit frustrated at this point, no matter what God had promised me.  I imagined them thinking, "Hey, we stood wet in the Jordan BEFORE it parted.  We marched around Jericho with y'all carrying the Ark...that was a long seven days.  We stood by the Lord when others worshipped the golden calf.  We were pretty brave and courageous for the Lord.  Are we seriously not getting anything for that?!"

Honestly, I feel for the Levites.  Some days it feels like everyone around me is receiving their blessings, their promises of God; I feel like I am constantly waiting and being told to wait longer for the deep desires in my heart.  I know this is a season of waiting, but I am impatient, tired of waiting, wanting my share of the inheritance now.

But what I thought was really interesting was chapter 21 - the Levites remind Joshua that God promised them places to live, and they were given homes.  Finally, the Levites have a place to rest. 

I wonder...do I need to keep asking God?  Do I give up when circumstances seem too insurmountable, when I feel forgotten?  For truly the Levites got the best of the inheritances of Israel, though it may not have seemed that way at all, and they had to wait the longest of the nation of Israel to receive their inheritance. 

Hope for me and all of us who sometimes feel like the Levites:

"Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass."  Joshua 21:45

If you feel like you are called to something, something beautiful, hard, unique for God, don't stop asking, waiting, growing.  It's coming.  He is faithful....and more amazing and beautiful than our minds can dream or imagine.