Heralds Digest

"So they answered Joshua and said, “Because your servants were clearly told that the Lord your God commanded His servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you; therefore we were very much afraid for our lives because of you, and have done this thing." (Joshua 9:24 NKJV) Life is consistently good only to those who are willing to surrender to the will of the Maker of life. Unlike many other nations who played strong, the Gibeonites preferred to play smart. Every man is entitled to his desires, but the acknowledgment of the supremacy of God's will is the antidote against frustration in life. How blissful would our world, nations, organizations, and families be, if the will of God can supersede personal interests? Smart bargain is actually not a show of weakness, but the exchange of personal strength with divine strength.

"So they said to him: “From a very far country your servants have come, because of the name of the Lord your God; for we have heard of His fame, and all that He did in Egypt." (Joshua 9:9 NKJV) No matter the adopted means of transportation, transit from a known station to another comes with certain level of risk. When a shift in nationality is anticipated, the risk may escalates to loss of certain rights and privileges of the current national status in pursuit of a new status. The voyage of the Gibeonites from the land of the Hivites to the Promised Land is perfectly simulated with a shift in allegiance from their gods to the Lord God of Israel. It was a journey of the mind and not of the body, taking the risk from their comfort zone to the secret place of the Most High. Therefore, it was difficult for Israel to deny them the shadow of the Almighty God. It pays to always be ready to take a smart voyage from our present preoccupation, instead of the frustration of throwing a ...