When we face an impossible obstacle in our pathway, we can use the same instruction God gave to the children of Israel. Consider for a moment what it might have been like. What would you have been thinking if you were the one marching around?

Britannica says that the walls were 13 feet high. There was a 28 feet high watchtower to help against human invasion. Joshua 6:1 says that the city was securely shut up because of the children of Israel.

The men of war were instructed to march around the city one every day for six days. On the seventh day they did it seven times. Numbers 2:32 says that there were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty in the army at that time.

Joshua 6:10 says, “Now Joshua had commanded the people, saying, You shall not shout or make any noise with your voice, nor shall a word proceed out of your mouth, until the day that I say to you, Shout! Then you shall shout.”

All words are first thoughts. The Lord knew the thoughts before His army would think them. Therefore His instruction was to not open their mouths so that their words would hinder His work.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.” Verse 7 says, “…a time  to keep silence, and a time to speak.” Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations.”

Joshua 6:20 says, “…And it happened when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat. Then every man went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city.”

How many times have you said, “I don’t believe it” when God answered your prayer in the most amazing way? I used to say those words all the time, even though I was looking at something right before my eyes. The Lord sent a friend to break me of that habit.

What words of unbelief slip out of your mouth when you face your impossibility? Notice that when the wall fell flat, each man went straight before him. The walled city had been an obstacle in the way of their journey to possess the promised land.

No plan of God’s can be thwarted. That is a truth that we can stand on. We may face wall-obstacles that seem formidable. Yet what God has called us to do, 1 Thessalonians 5:24 says that He will do it. That means that He will empower us through His resurrection power to enable us to accomplish what He has set before us.

Jericho obstacles in our lives are opportunities for the Lord to show Himself strong on our behalf. All that seems impossible for us, is backed entirely on Who the Lord is at all times. John 14:21 says that He will reveal or make Himself known to those who love Him and obey His commandments. He reveals HImself in ways that we have never experienced before through our humanly speaking impossibilities. 

Daily Life Skill Practice

Years ago I read a book that used the term ‘life skills’ regularly. It was my first exposure to the two words used together. One of the life skills that the teacher taught her young students was to pray the moment they got upset.

I participate in online mentoring. I am working with someone in another country whose religious beliefs shun Jesus. It is a huge challenge to me. I have to use the wisdom from verses without making references to them. In my last conversation my mentee had reacted to someone’s negative facial expression.

My answer started out with the words explaining about a life skill. I was a little curious because those two words are not in my regular vocabulary. As I pondered it, the contents of this post came into my thoughts.

How many times have you ‘assumed’ you knew what someone was thinking because of their facial expression? It is so easy for our flesh to jump to conclusion that are erroneous. 

We cannot know what another is thinking unless they tell us. Even satan does not know what we are thinking. Only the Lord is Omniscient, or All Knowing. David discovered really quickly that the Lord knows everything. His sin with Bathsheba started with a thought that he allowed to wander. David’s words in Psalm 139:1-2 clearly expressed the understanding that he gained.

It says, “O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off.” Has your mind ever wandered? He knows that also. 1 Chronicles 28:9 Amplified says, “…For the Lord searches all hearts and minds and understands all the wanderings of the thoughts…”

For interpersonal relationships to thrive, we will need to apply many different life skills. They are all in God’s word. Proverbs is a great book for data gathering on this subject. Here is one. Proverbs 15:1 says, “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”

Here is another. Proverbs 29:11 Amplified says, “A (self-confident) fool utters all his anger, but a wise man holds it back and stills it.” What an empowerment! When we yield to the Holy Spirit’s control in our life, the fruit of self-control guards our heart.

What about this life skill? Proverbs 4:23 says, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” Couple that with David’s prayer in Psalm 141. Verse 3 says, “Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips.”

Years ago I had a roommate that had the most interesting way of dealing with gossip. It was a life skill for her. The minute someone would start to tell her something about others? She would put her fingers in her ears and start making noise so she couldn’t hear.

Proverbs 30:32 says, “If you have been foolish in exalting yourself, or if you have devised evil, put your hand over your mouth.” The next time you are tempted to gossip? Literally, put your hand over your mouth. It works!

I hope this little post has stirred up your memory with some verses that you can apply as life skills when faced with temptations to sin. The temptation is only that. It is the lure to snag you, but you don’t have to take the bait.

Romans 12:2 says, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

The moment we accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior, the Holy Spirit comes to live within us. He is the inner anointing of 1 John 2:27 which I wrote about yesterday. He is the Spirit of Truth that will lead us into truth which will set us free from the influences of our past.

Our mind is not automatically renewed at salvation. Inner transformation is a ‘work’ that is done in our heart as we yield to the Holy Spirit’s leading. Our flesh fights against that work. Sometimes it will squeal like a stuck hog. It resists radical change.

We have to remember that our hearts were dark. We were alienated from God. We did not retain Him in our thoughts. Therefore the practice of renewing our mind must become a daily discipline.

Ephesians 4:23 Amplified says, “And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind (having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude).” Have you ever woken up in the morning with a bad attitude? It is because you went to sleep with it.

One of the benefits of renewing our mind is to rehearse those truths just before we fall asleep at night. God’s hidden word in our heart will instruct us in the night. Psalm 16:7 says, “I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel; my heart also instructs me in the night seasons.”

As we continually renew our mind through memorizing and meditating on God’s word, we will fulfill the next verse. Verse 8 says, “I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.”

When the temptation to sin comes swooping in unexpectedly, His word will immediately be our ready sword to whack the temptation to pieces. The fiery dart’s power to entice is squelched instantly. 

We are in a vicious battle. We have an adversary that hates the Lord, and therefore he hates us. God’s hidden word will be like a sentinel to warn us. The Holy Spirit uses what we have hidden in our heart to empower us to defeat every lying temptation. 

We must start with Galatians 5:16 which says, “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” We learn an essential truth in this verse. Our flesh lusts.

James 1:14 helps us understand the ‘how’ of our lust. It says, “But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” Verse 16 says, “Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.” Lust is a deceptive ploy that lures us.

We only yield to a temptation if we have hidden fleshly desires. James 4:17 says, “Therefore to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.” When we allow our eyes to stray, or we open our ears to gossip, the enticement increases exponentially. 

James 1:15 says, “Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” Temptation is not a sin. It is when we play with it in our mind, even knowing it is wrong, that we quench the Holy Spirit who was speaking at that moment.

Hebrews 3:13 says, “…hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” The Holy Spirit always leads us into truth. 1 John 2:27 described His work as, “…the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.”

It is when we abide in truth, making it our own, that releases His resurrection empowerment. Hebrews 13:21 says, “Make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.”

I love the word ‘working’ because it always reminds me of wheel pottery. The potter has to work water into the dry clay before it can ever be formed into a vessel. It is impossible to form hard clay.

That is what happens with hidden sin. Our heart (vessel) is impermeable without the water of God’s word worked into it. Our heart is our belief system. The lies we have believed are satan’s deceptive work.

It is only as we bring God’s word against that lie, that His resurrection power will ‘work’ to defeat the influence that lie’s control has had on our thought processes. As we renew our mind, He is at work to bring a radical inner transformation. Isaiah 32:17 says, “The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever.”

2 Corinthians 4:7 says, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.” Once Paul understood that God’s grace would be sufficient for him, he embraced his thorn in the flesh. 2 Corinthians 12:9 says, “…Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities…” What was his understanding?

Verse 7-8 continues, “…that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” Doing things in our own strength, strengthens our flesh and blocks grace. We must recognize that our weakness is God’s way to receive His strength.

The same power that raised Jesus from the dead dwells in us. It is most clearly evident in our lives when we absolutely place our dependence on Him. Ephesians 1:19-20 in the Amplified says, “And (so that you can know and understand) what is the immeasurable and unlimited and surpassing greatness of His power in and for us who believe, as demonstrated in the working of His mighty strength, which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead…”

Ephesians 3:20 says, “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.” Verse 16 in the Amplified says, “May He grant you out of the rich treasury of His glory to be strengthened and reinforced with mighty power in the inner man by the (Holy) Spirit (Himself indwelling your innermost being and personality).”

Let me recap some of the above words for our treasure within: excellence of the power, immeasurable, unlimited, surpassing greatness, exerted in, exceedingly abundantly, strengthened, and reinforced. Great words that are activated within us when we are yielded to the Holy Spirit. They are most clearly evident to those around us as we are in our deepest need.

Again I look back to an example that Steve Saint was for me. His precious young daughter had a massive aneurysm and he was saying goodbye. Here are his words that are written in the front of my Bible. “If I had asked God to change things and He gave in to me, how would my change alter the rest of His plan? I don’t want to ask God for what I desperately wanted in the short run, only to find out it had cost us what God wanted for us in the long run.”

When desperation rises up in our trial, we have two choices. Paul’s choice is our example. He had pleaded with the Lord to remove the thorn in his flesh. When the Lord reassured Paul that He would be his strength, Paul embraced that thorn wholeheartedly. I marvel at his words ‘most gladly’, and ‘I take pleasure’.

Paul left us another example of how to live in the treasure of God’s resurrection power. 2 Corinthians 4:18 says, “While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen…” It is so easy to get overwhelmed with what we do see, rather than gazing at the Lord, and looking to Him for the strength we need moment by moment.

An indication of our love for the Lord is our obedience to His word. John 14:21 says, “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

How can we obey if we don’t know? Psalm 119:4-6 says, “You have commanded us to keep Your precepts diligently. Oh, that my ways were directed to keep Your statutes! Then I would not be ashamed, when I look into all Your commandments.”

Proverbs 9:10 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” We cannot ‘know’ the Lord intimately apart from His word.

I love Psalm 119 because the writer used so many different words for God’s word. If you haven’t read this Psalm in a while, I encourage you to fit it into your schedule.

Psalm 119:147 says, “I rise before the dawning of the morning, and cry for help; I hope in Your word.” According to Hebrews 6:19, hope is the anchor of our soul. Without a treasure of God’s word in our heart, what hope would sustain us during the tumultuous storms in our lives? Nothing.

We would be like the double-minded man in James 1:6-8 says, “…he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind…he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” No anchor equals no stability.

Hope in God, through the heart-anchor of His word, squashes ALL doubts that come in through fiery darts. They fall to the ground inoperable. They have nowhere to penetrate because hope is faith’s indestructible living shield.

1 Peter 1:3 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”

God the Father raised Jesus from the dead. That same resurrection power resides in every believer. We live out the gospel through that power as we yield to the Holy Spirit.

I am starting out with the last two sentences from yesterday’s post. “Quality of life on this earth is living out the gospel. The gospel is designed to affect every aspect of our lives.”

Quality of life has nothing to do with whether or not our circumstances are negative or positive. It is defined through our relationship with the Lord. Genesis 2:7 says, “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life…”

Our relationship with the Lord is as vital as our breath. Therefore we do well to remember that sin separates us from fellowship with Him. Can you hold your breath very long without gasping for air? Can you remain separated from fellowship with the Lord and thrive?

I like to often visit John 15:5 in the Amplified. It says, “I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me (cut off from vital union with Me) you can do nothing.”

Here is the root to our fleshly reactions. We are living independent of the Lord in that moment. I want to use this illustration from my life to help us think about what independence means.

I had a low hanging branch on a tree in my backyard. It was always in my way. I laboriously sawed it off with a hand saw. It fell to the ground. I went in and laid down for 1/2 hour. When I came back, the first thing that I noticed were the leaves. They were shriveled. What a picture of living in sin!

Romans 11 was written about Israel. The wording in verse 18 is so instructional for us. It says, “Do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.”

What is the support in our relationship with the Lord? It is His word. John 15:10 Amplified says, “If you keep My commandments (if you continue to obey My instructions); you will abide in My love and live on in it, just as I have obeyed My Father’s commandments and live on in His love.”

Do you treasure God’s word? Is it laid up in your heart? Matthew 6:21 says, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” We will continue this tomorrow.

I want you to think of folks you know who are immobile, cannot care for themselves, or are shut-ins. My mind quickly goes to Joni Eareckson Tada. She cannot do anything for herself. Yet, she has a worldwide ministry.

Here is another one I think about often. Nick Vijicic. He was born without arms or legs. He has ministered to countless folks. He is married and has four children. I encourage you to watch his videos. 

Steve Saint traveled worldwide. He is the son of the pilot that flew onto the tiny beach in Ecuador. He and the other four missionaries were killed by the Auca Indians in 1956. Steve had a severe spinal cord injury on June 13, 2012. He was left partially paralyzed from the neck down. He was stopped in his tracks. Yet, the Lord has continued to use him mightily in a far different capacity.

Quality of life is defined through our thoughts on grace, not our abilities or mobility. Through 2 Corinthians 12:9, we get a broader view of grace. Paul asked the Lord to take away the thorn in his flesh. It says, “He said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

When we keep our mind flooded with God’s word, our thought processes are righteous. When we fill our mind with our adversities, we default to our flesh. Hebrews 11 is a record of other’s walk of faith in the midst of adversity. Verse 33-34 says, “Who through faith…stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to fight the armies of the aliens.”

Verse 37 said that some were sawn in two. Verse 39 says, “And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise.” Faith is not a thought process. It is an incontestable heart belief in the gospel. Romans 10:10 says, “For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

John 14:1 says, “…you believe in God, believe also in Me.” It is not enough to believe that God exists. We are called into a personal relationship with the Lord Who died for us on the cross. It is through Jesus’ death that we live. Paul’s words echoed this truth. Galatians 2:20 says, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”

Quality of life on this earth is living out the gospel. The gospel is designed to affect every aspect of our lives. We no longer live for ourselves, but we live under the control of the Holy Spirit. Our lives are to reflect that work through our thoughts, purpose, and actions being daily conformed to God’s will and ways.

I took care of my dad at my house for 10 1/2 years to give him quality of life so that he could continue to evangelize. The last 19 months of his life he was in a care facility. He tootled around in his wheelchair with his Bible on his lap. 

Psalm 139:16 says, “Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.” We will all live out the days fashioned for us. The question you need to ask yourself: Will I live them out with quality of life? Psalm 103:5 says, “Who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”

Everything in our life involves our thoughts. Our thoughts are always in our control. No one nor any circumstances can dictate our thoughts. What are thoughts that are conducive to our health?

Here is a great prescription. Psalm 104:33-34 says, “I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. May my meditation be sweet to Him; I will be glad in the Lord.”

I have watched a few videos about music therapy. The power of music is able to radically change a life. Ephesians 5:19 says, “Speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.”

New songs just bubble up from our heart in worship to the Lord. They are spiritual songs. They have no scrip, they are not premeditated, because they are the fruit of joy in Him. 

King Jehoshaphat instructed his singers to go out before the army. 2 Chronicles 20:22 says, “Now when they began to sin and to praise, the Lord set ambushes…and they were defeated.” I love Psalm 22:3. It says, “But You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel.” Have you ever lifted up your heart in song when you faced an impossible situation?

Here is another prescription. Hebrew 13:15 says, “Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.” Thankfulness is God’s will, according to 1 Thessalonians 5:18.

Here are two verses from a new song called Song Of The Altar: In the midst of adversity when trouble surrounds me. I come into Your presence and I build an altar. I remember how You met me time and time again and I bow in worship. Nothing can overtake me when I hide in You. Nothing can overwhelm me when I look to You. I set my eyes on You and I gaze into Your face. I bask in the love of Your eyes full of grace.

When we turn our gaze from our circumstances to the Lord with praise, Psalm 149 says that it defeats our enemy. You can read the whole Psalm for yourself. I want to end with Psalm 145:3. It says, “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable.” 

I woke up with Exodus 15:26 in my thoughts. It is a promise with a condition given to the children of Israel. Yet, it applies to us as well because the Lord does everything through His word. It says, “…If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.”

The Hebrew word for ‘heals’ means doctor. It is Yahweh-Ropheka. When we disobey God’s word, we open the door to dis-ease. Hebrews 12:15 is a great reminder of what happens with bitterness. Notice how it blocks grace. It says, “Looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled.”

What happened when the children of Israel complained? Numbers 11:1 says, “Now when the people complained, it displeased the Lord; for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused…” Psalm 107:20 says, “He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” Bitterness and complaining are toxic destroyers. Bitterness causes acid to drip on our neural connections which corrodes them.

Many diseases have spiritual roots. Our Great Physician stands by to heal us spiritually, emotionally, and physically. I do not know when my self-hatred and self-rejection began, but I know when it ended. For years I had spoken death words over my body. One day the Lord stopped me in my tracks by sending His word to heal me.

Our words come from our thoughts. Psalm 139:14 says, “I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.” Romans 9:20 says about the clay in the potter’s hands. “But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, Why have you made me like this?”

Jeremiah 1:5 says of God’s prophet, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you…” Let’s go back to Psalm 139:13. David said, “For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.” Verse 15 says, “My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.” Our Creator has known us before conception, and created us to be how He knew our whole life would play out.

Our destructive thoughts and ways disrupt His design. Did you know that one pound of excess fat requires 7 miles of new blood vessels and capillaries to support it? Excess pounds put stress on your heart, making it work far harder than it was designed to work.

Our toxic lifestyle habits destroy our good gut bacteria. 70% of our immune system, and neurotransmitters are in our gut. Street and pharmaceutical drugs, alcohol, sugar, white flour, all artificial sweeteners, and processed foods destroy what God has created to keep us healthy. All disease starts in the gut. Let us honor Him through obedience to His word, so that our destructive ways do not block His grace. Let us honor Him with the quality of life He designed us to serve Him with.