![[Photo of a Scripture verse]](https://www.deankwilson.com/Blog_images/Joshua_1_9_v02.jpg)
| “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” |
| —Joshua 1:9 |
We teach firefighters entering a burning building and wearing self-contained breathing apparatus to stay in close proximity to one another by keeping their hand on the shoulder of the firefighter walking ahead of them. They might also pull with them a rescue rope tied around the waist of each firefighter. Why do we take these steps? Because we know that close proximity is a key to safety when entering an unknown space. Often the smoke and hot gases in the building have made it nearly impossible to see clearly what dangers might exist ahead.
The truth is that every day we walk into unknown, potentially dangerous spaces. We call these spaces “another new day.” We never know what lies just around the next corner of our lives. We need to step forward boldly and courageously. To do so, we need to feel the proximity of the Holy Spirit. He holds the safety rope wrapped around our hearts.
Please note these words from God, as recorded in Joshua 1:9:
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
As we begin yet another new day, let us take these words of God, spoken to His servant, Joshua, and appropriate them for our own lives. For surely we know that God is the same today as He was in the days of Joshua. He will give us courage. He will give us strength. He will be with us wherever we go.
