Gosselin, Sanford, and Marriage

This week, two situations of marital conflict have risen to the top ranks of news headlines.

Jon and Kate Gosselin, the stars of the popular reality TV show, Jon & Kate Plus Eight, filed for divorce, and various media made their decision public. Both of them stated that their primary concern is the welfare of their children, and Kate specified, “My goal is peace for the kids.” This couple who espoused family values on the TV show has now given up on the sanctity of marriage. You can access one of the many stories about this divorce by clicking here.

Further down the east coast from the Gosselins’ Pennsylvania home, the governor of South Carolina, the state in which I live, also brought his family into the spotlight this week when news of his affair became a topic of public criticism. Gov. Mark Sanford’s affair has been going on for a while, but it hit the headlines this week after he disappeared without notifying his office or family of his whereabouts. It turns out that he was out of the country, apparently continuing his affair, after his wife, Jenny Sanford, had asked him to leave the family for a temporary separation with hopes of reconciliation. While we are uncertain about Mark Sanford’s desire for reconciliation, I respect his wife’s comments. She is committed to doing what she can to make the marriage work, and she said in her public statement, “I believe enduring love is primarily a commitment and an act of will, and for a marriage to be successful, that commitment must be reciprocal.” You can read her statement by clicking here.

Perhaps the Gosselins and the rest of us could learn from Jenny Sanford’s wise words about love and marriage. Indeed, as we glean from the authors of the Bible and from later Christian writers, marriage should be a love that is, in Mrs. Sanford’s words, “a commitment and an act of will.” A married person must everyday make the decision again and again to be faithful to his or her spouse, in many ways, despite any tempting alternatives from outside the marriage covenant and any difficulties or frustrations within that covenant relationship. That kind of love is similar to the kind God demonstrates and invites us to live with Him and, to varying extents, with other people, especially those with whom we have entered into God-ordained covenants. Every marriage inevitably has ups and downs, times when the couple feels an emotional euphoria and times when they feel the opposite. However, a true relational commitment rises above the temporary feelings and chooses to remain faithful and responsible, for the sake of everyone involved.

This may seem strange to our culture of self-centeredness and insistence on immediate gratification of momentary feelings. We tend to think that God wants spouses to be “happy” in their marriages, and we define “happiness” as superficial and individual gratification. When we experience less-than-”happy” times in marriage, we tend to at least consider seeking that muddled ideal of “happiness” somewhere outside the marital covenant.

However, as author Gary Thomas asks in Sacred Marriage, “What if God designed marriage to make us holy more than to make us happy?” Our goal as Christians is to grow closer to God, and remaining faithful in our marriages can help people do exactly that, if the spouses are committed together to God. Perhaps we should view marriage as a spiritual practice that can teach us something about God and strengthen our relationships with God, while simultaneously leading spouses closer to each other, for God’s sake, for their own sake, for the sake of their children, and for the sake of the world in which God desires to use their marriage as a testimony of his faith, hope, love, grace, and peace.

If you are married or planning to get married or thinking about getting married sometime, I pray that you will remember that marriage is a commitment that sometimes (hopefully often) involves positive feelings but is more than emotions and requires “an act of will” to rise above and survive the negative feelings in order to remain faithful as Christians, spouses, and parents (if you have children).

However, this applies to both married and single Christians. Love is a commitment that we can live out in a multitude of relationships–in families, among friends, in congregations, and with our non-yet-Christian neighbors, coworkers, and classmates who need to see God’s love lived out in the flesh by faithful disciples of His Son.

May God empower us through the Holy Spirit to live His kind of love.

Summer BDG at SMC

Today I received approval from the Spartanburg Methodist College (SMC) Chaplain to initiate a Bible discussion group (BDG) for students this summer. The past few weeks, I’ve been increasing my time on that campus, and the people I’ve met are fantastic. This summer BDG is a promising opportunity to help students grow in their faith. I have invited a few students and encouraged them to invite their friends. We still need to decide when and where to meet each week. Please pray that God will use this group to bring glory to Him and to empower students to more faithfully follow His Son through the power of His Spirit.

If you’re on Facebook, you can access the group profile by clicking here.

Hero and Book

Campus Crosswalk, an online campus ministry publication, recently posted an article and a book review I wrote. You can see them by clicking here.

The article is about Wade Scharff, a man who was active in ministry with college students. The review is about a book the confronts the “new atheism.”

The article is called “Unsung Heroes: Remembering Wade Scharff” and is on the right side of the page, and the review is on the left.

Please read both and leave comments there. I want to know what you think. Thanks!

Here are the direct links…

For the article.

For the review.

Banishing Snakes

This Tuesday is St. Patrick’s Day. Although many celebrants have no clue about the Patrick of that day, learning a little about his story has enriched my life. I pray that it can benefit you as well.

I won’t tell his whole story here. You can read about his life in other places, and I’ll post a couple helpful links at the end of this message.

Patrick was born in Britain sometime toward the end of the fourth century AD to a wealthy family who owned slaves. He was kidnapped as a teenager, shipped to Ireland, and forced to work as a slave there for seven years. He escaped and returned to Britain, became a minister, and went back to Ireland as a missionary and was highly instrumental in establishing Christianity on that island. He died in 461 on March 17, which is now the annual date of St. Patrick’s Day.

After Patrick died, his life and work were largely forgotten. However, several myths about him developed through the following years. Today, if we hear anything about him in the midst of green and Guinness, that information is likely mythological.

One myth about Patrick is that he banished all snakes from Ireland. John Roach of National Geographic News reports that Ireland is an island that “is surround by icy ocean waters–much too cold to allow snakes to migrate from Britain or anywhere else.”  Roach’s article references the historian Philip Freeman, who points out that snakes never existed on the island.

Although this story is most likely legendary with no literal truth, it has some value as a metaphor. Roach writes, “But since snakes often represent evil in literature, ‘when Patrick drives the snakes out of Ireland, it is symbolically saying he drove the old, evil, pagan ways out of Ireland [and] brought in a new age,’ Freeman said.”

While the story about Patrick’s banishing of snakes is not historically valid, it metaphorically speaks a verified fact. Patrick took the message of Christ to a people who did not know him. The namesake of St. Patrick’s Day played a large role in reversing Ireland’s fifth-century evil, the full extent of which we will never know in this realm.

Surely Patrick read and attempted to live these words from the Fourth Gospel about Jesus Christ: “In him was life, and the life was the light of [people]. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (1:4-5, ESV).

May you, like Patrick, live and minister in ways that shine the light of Christ and banish various forms of “darkness.” That is my prayer for you on this St. Patrick’s Day.

For more information about Patrick, explore these links:

Catholic Encyclopedia

Catholic Online

Philip Freeman’s Book

Papa’s Funeral

I said that I planned to post my message from my grandfather’s funeral, and here it is. Before you read it, however, I should tell you that Papa did not want a traditional “sermon” at his funeral. This was because he had seen some of what I call “ministerial malpractice” at funerals (i.e., preachers condemning family members of the deceased). I tried to honor his request. I also should mention that my aunt, Brenda Hardesty, wrote most of the obituary in Part 1. I modified parts of it to be spoken from my perspective.

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Funeral MESSAGE FOR CAREY LIVINGSTONE TRAMEL

By Steven Tramel Gaines, December 16, 2008

Part 1

Family and friends, we are gathered this morning to celebrate the life and death of Carey Livingstone Tramel…whose real name was Papa.

Papa passed from this life on Thursday, December 11, 2008, at the age of 92 years, 4 months, and 15 days. He was born on July 26, 1916, in Brinkman County, Oklahoma, the fifth of six children born to James Dennis Tramel and Verna Etha Tramel.

At an early age, he moved with his family to Bazette in Navarro County, Texas, where the family lived and farmed on property belonging to his cousin Jasper Tramel, an area later known as the Hancock Ranch. Papa attended school at the three-room Wilson Schoolhouse and then graduated at Kerens High School.

On January 20, 1944, Papa married Lola Jenkins…whose real name was Granny. They had a long and happy marriage, living in Corsicana, Dallas, Fort Worth, Oklahoma, and finally Midland, Texas. In Midland, Granny and Papa were long-time members of the Cuthbert & Austin St. church of Christ. After his Granny’s death, Papa moved to Schleicher County, Texas, near Eldorado, to live with Aunt Brenda and Uncle Danny.

Carey Tramel was predeceased by his wife, Lola, in 2005. He also outlived both his parents, two brothers, Doyle Tramel of Indiana and Elston Tramel of California, and two sisters, Coleen Pascal of Oregon and Vila Hill of Arkansas and Texas.

Papa is survived by one sister, Noma Paul, of California, and his three children, daughter Saundra Tramel Gaines and husband Larry of Odessa, Texas, son Carey Don Tramel and wife Sara of Austin, Texas, and daughter Brenda Tramel Hardesty and husband Danny, of Schleicher County, Texas.

Also grieving their Papa’s loss are 5 grandchildren: Michael Gaines and wife Bobbie of Odessa, Texas, Steven Tramel Gaines and wife Tamara of Spartanburg, South Carolina, Mark Gaines and wife Kendra of Farmington, New Mexico, Doug Hardesty and wife Shaina of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Lizzy Tramel of Austin, Texas. Papa leaves three great-grandchildren and numerous in-laws, nieces, nephews, cousins, and church friends.

[Now please join together in singing three hymns: “Amazing Grace,” “Sweet By and By,” and then “No Tears in Heaven.”]

Prayer

Heavenly Father,

We thank you for your amazing grace,

and we thank you for the hope of the “sweet by and by,”

and we look forward to Heaven where there will be no tears.

But today we do have tears,

and we invite you to comfort us as we mourn

and to give us joy as we remember.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

Part 2

Papa said he didn’t want any preachin’ at his funeral….

So I’ll try to control myself.

But I have to start with scripture this morning. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said that we should “live such good lives” that people see the good things we do and glorify God. Papa was a good man, and he did lots of good things. And this is our opportunity to remember and celebrate his life, to thank God for all he was to us, and to let our memories of him shape our lives in a positive way.

Papa liked to read, and one of his favorite novelists was Louis L’Amour, so I found several quotes from that author that relate to Papa’s life.

One of those quotes says, “For one who reads, there is no limit to the number of lives that may be lived, for fiction, biography, and history offer an inexhaustible number of lives in many parts of the world, in all periods of time.” And Papa read a lot. He read many novels. He also read newspapers and commodity reports and even encyclopedias. And he read maps. No, Aunt Brenda says he didn’t read maps—he studied them, and I think he knew the location of every county in the state of Texas and many in other states.

He was a man in constant search of knowledge. But he didn’t just accumulate facts. Another Louis L’Amour quote states, “Knowledge is like money: to be of value it must circulate, and in circulating it can increase in quantity and, hopefully, in value.” Papa circulated his knowledge. He shared it with the people he loved. Carey Tramel was our grandfather, our daddy, our uncle, and more. He also was our professor. Sometimes he shared information to be interesting or funny. Other times, he taught us valuable life lessons.

One time when I was a child, my family was eating at Granny and Papa’s house. I ate so much and got so full that I couldn’t finish the food on my plate. But then I wanted dessert…because Granny’s desserts were out of this world. One of my parents objected. (Was that you, Mama?) But Papa interceded on my behalf and taught us all a very important lesson: little boys have two stomachs—one for regular food and one for dessert! I don’t think Papa learned that lesson from Louis L’Amour’s novels. He learned it from experience.

Another important lesson he shared with my brothers and me from his experience was that we should learn how to do things, not just how to tell other people to do things. Remembering that lesson has often helped me get my head out of the clouds once in a while and get my hands dirty in practical work.

And Papa practiced what he preached. In his lifetime, he did many kinds of work. When he was just a little kid, he picked cotton and caught opossums and sold their skins for 50 cents apiece to people who made hats out of them.

Later on, he worked on airplanes and a few helicopters. He was a mechanic on trainer planes during the war and on private planes in the oil industry. He worked for a while with Braniff Airlines and even dabbled in flying planes himself.

Other work adventures included working for a dairy—working the cows and delivering milk—assisting in a funeral home, selling insurance, and doing carpentry.

He worked a while in shrimping and even lived on a small shrimp boat. In fact, he was a shrimp boat captain.

He also was a truck driver and went to every state in the nation except Deleware, Hawaii, and Rhode Island. And even though he never went to Rhode Island, he got a parking ticket from there once!

When I was a young lad, Papa helped Granny with the poodle grooming business in their house.

Later on, he was a commodities trader. He was careful in this work, not one to take unwise risks. But he was committed to the task, and he was still involved in it when he died. A little over a week before he passed on, he got so sick that he had to go to a nursing home. But just a few days before that, Aunt Brenda came home and found him crawling around on the floor figuring out how to reconnect some computer cables so he could work better. (He was quite tech-savvy for a 92-year-old.)

Papa was a worker. And some of his best work was not for pay. Year after year in his backyard garden, he raised sweet potatoes, zucchini, onions, tomatoes, okra, and the best cantaloupe in the world.

He totally remodeled the kitchen in his house, and he put more than one roof on that house, even when he was too old to be doing it. (But he scolded me whenever I got up there!)

He was also an inventor. He designed his own drilling system and built a well in his backyard, and he created his own irrigation system, and he made his own lawnmower from spare parts. (And he let me drive it around the backyard, even though I crashed it into the storage shed.)

His most famous invention was the tent that has served many picnics at the cemetery we’ll go to in just a few minutes. He made it, stored it, transported it, and set it up. It was one way in which he loved his family and his community. And the fact that he cared about his family and community were obvious when, in the last year of his life, in poor health, he attended the Hudson family reunion, the Jenkins family reunion, and the Bazette Prairie Point Picnic.

L’Amour wrote that “all education is self-education.” And Papa was a self-educated man. He was always learning. He taught me about animals he had never seen. He taught me how to work his homemade lawnmower. He taught me that even a 90-year-old man connected to an oxygen tank can work a garden and fix a lawnmower. He also taught me not to get too proud of my education. I went off to college and got a few pieces of paper that said I was smart, but whenever I would visit Papa, he would ask me questions I could not answer. And I learned that wisdom is more than knowing a bunch of information.

But Papa never assumed himself to be more than he was. One time, long before I was born, he spoke for his local congregation and warned the people that he didn’t have anything new to say, and that they should be concerned if he did say anything new. Surely he had read these words from Ecclesiastes: “There is nothing new under the sun.”

Papa also knew how to have fun. I remember sitting on his lap in his living room playing some old hangman-type game that was hooked up to the TV. He enjoyed a good game of 42 and could hold his own in playing cards. Some of you could tell stories of how he liked to have fun in his younger days. Shortly before his last breath, Aunt Brenda visited Papa before going on a work trip. He was in pain, but he was still cracking jokes.

Dorothy Jo emailed me this story: “Uncle Carey’s wit and sense of humor are two of the most memorable things about him to me.  The day before the Prairie Point Picnic this year, some of us gathered to put the awning over the Jenkins’ table.  Stan rode his motorcycle to that gathering.  James asked Uncle Carey if he had ridden that motorcycle all the way from west Texas.  Uncle Carey answered that he had.  My 8 year old granddaughter, Adelyn, heard that conversation.  Later she asked me how he had carried his oxygen on the motorcycle.  When I told Uncle Carey about her question, he got a big laugh out of it.”

I’m sure that you have your own memories about this great man, and I encourage you to share them with each other. Remember him. Thank God for him. Learn from him. For, in the words of Hebrews 12, he is now a member of that “great cloud of witnesses” that watches and cheers as we run the race of life.

Papa said he didn’t want any preachin’ at his funeral….

But his life was a sermon.

Born Again…Again

A few young adults have recently talked to me about re-baptism. Just last week, a college student told me she was thinking about getting baptized again and wondered if she sounded crazy. People have different perspectives on this subject, and even staff members ministering with the same congregation can disagree. This often happens with subjects the Bible does not clearly lay out for us. In case you’re curious about the topic of re-baptism, here is a slightly modified version of my response to the student last week. Some parts might be a little awkward, since you don’t have the student’s original Facebook message to me; but you’re probably smart enough to fill in enough gaps to make sense of my message.

__________________________________________________

First, let me say that you do NOT sound completely crazy. I appreciate your desire to express your love and devotion to our Lord. This feeling is admirable and should never be quenched. I also appreciate your awareness of the Spirit’s moving.

Second, I do NOT think any less of you because of your past actions or because you opened up to me about them, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23), and confession is a healthy and healing practice that we experience too seldom in the church today (James 5:16).

Theologically and biblically, it’s hard to make a clear judgment about whether Christians should be re-baptized. I seriously considered being re-baptized one time and did not do so. Last semester, another member of our college group felt he needed to be re-baptized, and he went through with it, with my support. Even one of our deacons was re-baptized not too long ago.

When someone is thinking about getting re-baptized, my questions are NOT about how much the person knew about what God was doing in the baptism (e.g., was it for the forgiveness of sins, was it for the gift of the Holy Spirit, etc). People never know everything about baptism when they are baptized; they continue learning and growing long after the baptism. Instead, my questions revolve around the individual’s commitment to the Lord at the time of baptism. Were you making a firm commitment to God when you were baptized? Did you fully intend that commitment to be life-long? Did you understand that you were dedicating you whole life to following the teachings and examples of Jesus Christ? Or were you going through a motion to gain people’s approval or superficially obeying a command simply to avoid hell?

But those are my thoughts. The Bible is silent on the matter of re-baptism (with the exception of Acts 19, where some people were re-baptized because they did not receive the Holy Spirit at their original baptisms). The experience of re-baptism has led many people into more passionate lives in Christ and closer relationships with God.

The choice is up to you. If you choose not to be re-baptized, I believe that God will continue the saving relationship started at your earlier baptism. If you choose TO be re-baptized, your spiritual growth could benefit from the renewal of commitment and devotion and love for God. The experience could serve sort of like a renewal of vows.

I will be fully supportive of whichever decision you make. I am glad that you are experiencing these thoughts and feelings, and I rejoice because of the growing intensity of your desire for God.

I’m Still Here

Perhaps you thought I had disappeared, since I went a couple of months without blogging. On the contrary, I’m still here.

December was a happening month for me.

Death claimed my last living grandparent. Papa died on December 11, and I officiated his funeral on December 16. (I plan to post that funeral speech soon.)

On December 19, the YAC (young adult and college) group of Central Church of Christ had a Christmas party. We ate a scruptuous meal prepared by Linda Landrum, who hosted the extravaganza. We also played a homemade game and wrapped presents, which we gave to neighborhood families the following day, as part of the Central Neighbor to Neighbor ministry event.

In late December and early January, Tamara and I did a bit of flying. We went to Fayetteville, Arkansas, on December 23 to visit her family. Then we traveled to Odessa, Texas, on the 29th to spend a few days with my family. Then I enjoyed a class about grief ministry at ACU. Thanks to Grant and Brad for leading the Sunday morning class in my absence!

Now I’m back in Spartanburg. Last night Tamara and a couple of the YAC young women had a movie night, and some us guys decided to have one, too. Our Sunday morning Bible class is finishing our discussions of the book of Joshua this Sunday morning. Then we’ll have a two-week break for a retreat and a seminar, after which we plan to begin exploring the book of Judges. We are learning that some oft-ignored sections of scripture can have important applications for faith and life today. (I hope to write more about Judges here than I posted about Joshua.)

I pray that 2009 is beginning well for you.

Tiger and Turkey

Yesterday morning some of us from the campus ministry took a road trip to visit Clemson Church of Christ and their campus ministry, called Christian Student Fellowship. The congregation is smaller than Central, and we have been supporting the ministry there for a few years. The church building is just across the street from Clemson University, so the congregation is very involved in campus ministry.

Danny Vaden is their preacher, but he was their campus minister when I moved to South Carolina in May 2007. He started the Clemson CSF in 2000 and has been a helpful resource for me. Now, with Danny’s transition to weekly preaching, Matt Fields has stepped into leadership of the campus ministry. Both Danny and Matt were away this weekend to visit one of the supporting congregations in Tennessee.

I am grateful that Danny invited our group to visit the church and campus ministry this Sunday, and I enjoyed getting to preach in the worship assembly. The people were attentive, and they were very cooperative when I encouraged them to get involved in the sermon by answering a couple of questions and joining together in a congregational response that we repeated a few times.

Our group met in our regular classroom in Spartanburg at our normal time (9:00). Then we loaded up in a van and went to Clemson. We arrived at the church building half-way through Bible class time, having planned to be there for worship but not class. We wandered into the maze-like building and met some helpful people who guided us to the college class. Paul, Matt’s substitute, did a superb job of leading us through some passages of Deuteronomy. It was interesting that the class was studying Deuteronomy, since my sermon was going to come from that book and the next one, Joshua. (I’m sure that is no surprise to anyone who has been reading my blog!)

The sermon went well. In addition to the congregational participation I already mentioned, our new campus ministry assistance, John Landrum, read biblical passages at three points during the sermon. He had a wireless microphone, so he read from his seat. Good job, John!

After the worship assembly, we joined several church members, mostly college students and other young adults, at Mello Mushroom, a pizza place close to the church building. Other than the toppled beverage, the lunch was splendid.

We returned to the Central church building in Spartanburg sometime around 3:30. Tamara took our car to a store to get more supplies for the YAC (Young Adult and College) Thanksgiving Dinner and Devo at our house, which was to start at 5:00. John and I loaded chairs and tables into the van, and I transported them to our house for the event. 24 people attend the party at our house, and we had a blessed time together. My devo message came from Ephesians 1, and the menu included turkey, gravy, ham, dressing, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, strawberry-pretzel salad, rolls, cranberry sauce, tea, lemonade, coffee, pumpkin pie, pecan pie, and cheese cake. This weekend was my first time to cook a turkey and make giblet gravy, and no one died from eating them!

This morning, JD (Central youth minister and SECH campus minister) picked me up at my house at 8:00 and took me to the Southeastern Children’s Home, where I spoke at their weekly devotional. Then he and I ate breakfast at the Duncan Family Restaurant and talked about ministry stuff. Following the big meal and conversation, he helped me unload and return the van. Thanks, JD!

This was a great weekend, and I am grateful for countless blessings.

Flag Football and Faith

Today we enjoyed a church-wide flag football game. For a while this morning, I thought the wind might complicate our playing, but it did not.

Here are a few lessons I learned from flag football this afternoon:

1. Athletic events can nurture intimate fellowship among Christians. In addition to talking and drinking water together, we also get to chase, push, and sometimes grab each other.

2. Conflict can enrich relationships. We were able to work our way through disagreements (about what down it was or how many times a team had scored) and reach a peace that glorified God, who undoubtedly was watching.

3. Different people can do different things. Some players were skilled at receiving. Others were good at throwing. Some were fast. A few were strategists. Some were peacemakers/peacekeepers. At this and other events, we have opportunities to use our various talents to grow closer to each other and thereby grow closer to God.

4. For some, sitting and chatting on the sidelines can be more rewarding than playing football. There are different forms of fellowship.

5. When equipment breaks, we can think of many possible solutions, some of which work better than others. All arenas of ministry, including recreation, require some willingness to try new things and then to try other things if necessary.

6. In flag football, as in life, sometimes we need to relieve our teammates who are tired or hurting. Activity and rest both are good.

7. Sporting events can be outreach activities. At least five people at the game today were not regularly active members of the congregation (or of any other faith group, to my knowledge).

8. Sometimes the smallest person can be a great asset to a team. Way to go, Brady!

What lessons have you learned from ministry-related athletic events?

Transitions

In my last post, I mentioned that I was planning to speak at Spartanburg Methodist College Tuesday night. I did, and God blessed my time that evening with the SMC community. 62 students were in attendance, plus the chaplain and me. The students seemed to pay attention, and they responded with some good questions at the end.

Wednesday morning, I was on that campus again to preach in the weekly chapel assembly. About 200 people attended that event, and I spoke about transitions in life. Here is a summary of the sermon.

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Life is filled with transitions. One of my teachers several years ago said that the only constant thing is change. We go through many transitions in life, like graduating from high school, going to college, adjusting to college during the freshman year, choosing classes, declaring a major, selecting a career, making and losing friends, beginning dating relationships, breaking up, and deciding what to believe.

How can we survive the transitions in our lives?

When I was a child, we often sang a hymn that begins to answer that question. It’s called, “Hold to God’s Unchaning Hand,” and the first verse says:

Time is filled with swift transition,

Naught of earth unmoved can stand,

Build your hopes on things eternal,

Hold to God’s unchaning hand.

That hymn ties nicely to an old story in the Bible. It’s an ancient story with contemporary applications for transitions.

In Deuteronomy, the Israelites have been wandering in the wilderness for forty years. The generation that experienced God’s mighty deliverance from Egyptian slavery has almost completely died off. A new generation is about to enter the Promised Land.

Deuteronomy is Moses’ farewell address to the Israelites, reminding them of whose they are and, therefore, who they should be and how they should act. God, through Moses, gives the people several commands, but they are more than dos and don’ts; they are based on God’s characteristics. The Israelites should want to live in ways that please God because God has been so good to them.

Moses warns his people that the new land has other cultures of people who worship other gods and do things that are not appropriate for God’s people. These different people and their strange beliefs and actions will tempt the Israelites to forget their identity as God’s people and to do things that neglect God’s goodness that is supposed to shape their faith and behavior.

The people are coming to a major transition, and Moses reminds them of what God has done for them and what God expects of them. Then he goes up on a mountain to die, and Joshua becomes the Israelites’ new leader.

Joshua has already proven himself as a great military commander. He has been Moses’ assistant for several years, and he has learned from Moses’ wise leadership. He has learned to commune with God, and he has learned that he is not perfect. He has shown his confidence in God’s faithfulness.

Now Joshua must lead the Israelites through a major transition, from being wildreness wanderers to claiming the Promised Land and settling in their own towns. But Joshua has never done this before. In fact, no one has. He probably feels afraid and uncertain and nervous, which is why Moses and God and the military officers tell him to be “strong and courageous.”

In Deuteronomy 31:7-8, near the end of Moses’ farewell address, he commissions Joshua as the new leader and says, “Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the LORD swore to their forefathers to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance. The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

In Joshua 1:6, God tells Joshua,”Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them.” Then, in verse 9, God tells him, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” In verse 18, some of the military officers also tell Joshua, “Be strong and courageous.” This theme pops up again near the end of the book, in chapter 23, where Joshua tells his people to “be very strong.”

But how are Joshua and his people to “be strong and courageous?”

In 1:6-9, God tells Joshua how to do it. He is to obey what God has said, talk about what God has said, meditate on what God has said, and know that the Lord will be with him.

In 23:6-11, Joshua tells the people to “be very strong,” and he gives them some ways to do that. They are to obey what God has said, avoid serving other gods, “hold fast to the LORD,” remember what God has done, and be “very careful to love the LORD.”

This advice is for God’s people in all ages. It was for the ancient Israelites. It was for the early Christians. (Hebrews 13:5 quotes Joshua 1:5.) And I believe it is for us today, too.

When you encounter transitions, whether large or small, follow the insights from this biblical story.

Remember whose you are, and let whose you are determine who you are and how you live.

You will experience temptations to live in ways that are contrary to your identity as God’s people. When this happens, remember the words of Joshua: “Be very careful to love the LORD your God.”

Remember the good things God has done throughout history and in your own lives.

Follow the guidelines God gave to Joshua as he was preparing for the Israelites’ great transition. Joshua was to obey what God had said; and in order to obey it, he had to read it and study it. He was to meditate on what God had said, and he was to talk with people about it. He was to remember that God was with him. All these things helped Joshua do what God had said.

So as you try to find your way through the transitions in your life, remember these biblical principles:

1. Read and study what God has said.

2. Meditate on what God has said.

3. Talk about what God has said.

4. Remember the good things God has done.

5. Remember that God never forsakes His people.

6. Let these practices shape who you are and how you live.

God will get you through the transitions, and those transitions will strengthen you and glorify God. Through it all, remember: “Be strong and courageous!”

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[All quotes from the Bible come from the New International Version.]