A Gentle Reminder from the Book of Joshua

This morning I started reading the book of Joshua and came across a simple commandment that was given to the Israelites as they were getting to break camp to enter into the land of Canaan. Joshua 3:3-4: "and they commanded the people, saying, 'When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God with the Levitical priests carrying it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. However, there shall be between you and it a distance of about 2,000 cubits by measure. Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you shall go, for you have not passed this way before.'" The Israelites were to remain about a 1/2 mile away from the ark at all times so they could see clearly where they were to be going. It was their GPS :) Without it, they would have gotten lost and who knows, maybe they would have wondered in the wilderness for another 40 years. What a sweet and gentle reminder this was for me today. I could hear God say to me, "Melody, stay back far enough so that you can clearly see where I am going, so you can follow me. Do not rush ahead, do not get in front of me, because you have not gone this way before." If you read my blog regularily, you will know God has been leading me on a journey of learning to not plan so much, to rely on Him, follow His lead and go after Him wherever that may be. I am noticing, the more planning I do, the less things seem to work out. However, when I sit back and let God.........WOW! Stuff starts happening beyond anything I could have made happen. So, I am thankful for the reminder this morning. Let God lead. All I have to do is follow. Simple.