I doubt if Joshua ever experienced boredom. It seems the days weren’t long enough for him to do all he wanted to do for the Lord. Ever since he succeeded Moses he had been going flat out as the leader of Israel. He was one of the originals who had come out of Egypt. Joshua and Caleb were among the twelve men who checked out the land of Canaan and brought back their non-unanimous report to the Israelites. Ten said: “Forget it. We could never conquer that land. The enemies are stronger than we are.” But Joshua and Caleb said: “Let’s go for it! With God on our side there can be no obstacles!” A refreshing perspective to say the least.

Due to the fears and whinings and complainings of the people of Israel, God stalled them in the wilderness and they wandered around for 40 years. For many, I am sure those years seemed desperately long and frustrating and not particularly exciting. Our christian lives can be like that when we are out of touch with God – when days turn into months and months into years and we are going nowhere fast for the Lord. When Christians say they are bored, there must be something wrong with their life before the Lord. Joshua had his eye on the Lord. 20+ years of leading God’s people whizzed by so quickly. From his perspective there was just so much to be done and too little time to do it all. Before he knew it, he was blowing out approximately 100 candles on his birthday cake and he gets a card (sort-of) from the Lord which said:

Since the Lord saved you, have you been going flat out for the Lord? Or have you been derailed or side-tracked? Are you in sync with the Lord or out of step? When He saved you He had plans for your life – territory for you to conquer and possessions for you to claim in your Christian life for His glory.

I almost get out of breath reading the book of Joshua – it was one exploit after another. When Joshua took over the helm from Moses, the Lord said to him: “Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that I have given unto you…” So you can imagine how eager Joshua was to leave his tracks on as much ground as possible. Focused. Upbeat. Positive. A man with a mission in step with God.

How is your eagerness for the Lord today? Still lots of energy to claim new ground for the Lord? Or do you think you’ve made it and you can coast to the finish line? There was no coasting with the Apostle Paul. He pressed toward the mark. (Philippians 3:14)

Spiritually, are you bored or winding down? Or is your heart pounding louder and louder with these words:

If you are experiencing boredom, it is time for you to get alone with the Lord to uncover what is wrong. Only then will you be able to move on with a fresh appreciation of all the spiritual possessions that are yours to claim and enjoy.

Christians without a spiritual ‘TO DO’ list are missing out!