Our Commander and Chief

Joshua 1:5-7
 
“No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land, which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses, My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.”
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General George Washington told his commanders, “A leader must look and act the part if he is going to have the success needed for a proper command.”And Washington wasn’t all talk either. Eyewitness accounts record that the General was literally fearless on the battlefield. At the battle of Trenton, soldiers reported that “in the fly of battle with cannons ablaze all about, Washington sat erect upon horseback and never was seen once to duck or to flinch as bullets sailed by!” Where did he find this confidence and peace? During other times, he had been frustrated and angry at the failure of others. But at the news of his troops running low on gunpowder and not having enough but for two shots each, Washington stood silent and unable to speak for half an hour. How could a man who was completely human be prone to be such an inspiration to others?

George Washington was a man of prayer. His Bible reading was a daily occurrence. Even before Congress had given him the command of the Continental Army, he was in the habit of reading his Bible one hour in the morning and one hour in the evening. Is it no wonder that a man called to such a high task of birthing a nation would also be a man well versed in the Bible?
No doubt, being so knowledgeable, he was acquainted with the promises given to another general, a man by the name of Joshua who was general of the Israeli army.  Perhaps General Washington read the Bible with a deep sense of personal application. Those who read the Bible will believe it powerfully when it says, “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life, (George); as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land, which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous (George), that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; and (George), do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left that you may prosper wherever you go.” 
If our God is real, and He is; and if our faith is real, and it is; and if the Bible is true, and it is; then we too must look and act the part if we are going to have the success needed for a proper command. We are in Christ’s army. We do not need to duck or flinch when Satan begins to shoot his arrows our way or sling his lies against us. Our call is greater than Satan’s weapons. Nothing that he can bring against us will prosper as we look to our Commander and Chief, Jesus Christ.
Pastor Jack