Start to Finish


"I was forty years old when Moses, the servant of the Lord, sent me ... to explore the land of Canaan. I returned and gave from my heart a good report ... I followed the Lord my God completely. So that day Moses promised me, 'The land of Canaan on which you were just walking will be your special possession ... because you wholeheartedly followed the Lord my God.' ... Today I am eighty-five years old. I am as strong now as I was when Moses sent me on that journey ... So I'm asking you to give me that hill country that the Lord promised me ..." Joshua 14:6-14

Starting and finishing are not the same thing. I've driven my wife crazy and myself too for that matter by leaving things half done. As I write this devotion, my garage is half-cleaned and half-sorted leaving it nearly half-functional. I, of course, have lots of great reasons (lame excuses) why the mess remains, but the painfully obvious reality is that finishing it would be awesome. 

Caleb was a great starter. He was also a great finisher. He loved and honored God by his great faith even when most gave in to fear. In the story for today, he's eighty-five, strong as ever, fearless and ready to rumble. He asked Joshua to let him take the hill country that was filled with giants and walled fortresses. He trusted God early, often and always. His life was lived to the fullest.

What is it about the long haul that derails people in their walk with God? One author used a phrase that could be used to accurately describe Caleb's life: A long obedience in the same direction. Would that accurately describe your life or mine? Here's the good news for us all. Today is the first day of the rest of our lives. We can from this day forward, with God's help, remain faithful from start to finish. 
  

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