Judges 2:10 – After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things He had done for Israel.

God has called us into a relationship with Him. Think about that. The God of the universe has created us and put all things in place – including making us holy through Christ’s death. Why? So we can be His friend. Verse 10 says that the people grew up and didn’t acknowledge the Lord. Certainly, the historical stories of how He had rescued them from Egypt were still known to them. Certainly they knew of God and how He had been the God of their ancestors. But they didn’t KNOW Him. A relationship takes work. It isn’t healthy if it is a private thing. If you really care about someone, you want others to know about your relationship. To “acknowledge” is a verb – it means we’re doing something. It wasn’t that the next generation hadn’t heard of God, it was that they hadn’t admitted that He was real and that they needed Him. They didn’t have a relationship with Him.

Instead, they got distracted by all the things of their world – the “gods” of their neighbors. How about us? Do we get distracted by the gods in our neighborhoods? (make a list!) Do we take time to remember the mighty things that God has done for us? (make another list!)

Dear God, We are overwhelmed that you WANT to have a relationship with us. Help us live lives that acknowledge that you are our God. Help us to live gratefully remembering the mighty things that you have done and do for us daily. Show us how the distractions of this world keep us from KNOWING You better. Amen.

These verses talk to me about trust. It explains trusting in the Lord. If you do what he says – he will provide for you the things you need (but not the things you may want). If you do not trust Him, your needs will not be met and you may be punished.  The ways that you can work on your relationship with God to know what you are trusting is through your prayer conversations, your dreams, and the Bible. Seek Him in theses ways to build that relationship with Him.

Dear Lord, Help me to trust you more often in my life. Help me to get through each day and get over the obstacles in life. Amen.

Israel fights the remaining Canaanite's
 
The first chapter of Judges chronicles the Israelites continuing war with the Canaanite's and various other neighbors. Many battles were fought and with the Lord’s help, the Israelite defeated their foes.
 
This was for me a difficult chapter to relate to today’s world and God. Even harder, the question posed in the Joshua devotional outline, “What it means to follow Jesus today”. I started out by reading the chapter a couple of times. But nothing jumped out at me, there was nothing there. No moving narratives, songs of praise or commandments
 
With the deadline, looming and not wanting shirk my commitment, I prayed, “Lord help me to see and understand your words”.  
 

This is shortly after Joshua’s death and the Israelite’s are still at war with Canaanite's. The people were without a leader. They asked the Lord, “Who shall lead us? The Lord sent them many great leaders, Judah, Caleb and others.  
 
As we now move into our new relationship with the LCMC, you may have wondered
Who Shall lead us? The Answer is simple first and foremost the LORD! We at Central Lutheran church are blessed with many wonderful leaders.
A loving and caring Ministry  staff, worship leaders, mission leaders and others will lead us as Central Lutheran continues to do God work as part of the LCMC. There is always room for one more as there is much of God’s work to be done. Get involved, be a leader, help do God work.
 
Heavenly Father, thank you for blessings. Be with our leader as they continue to guide us. Amen.

I love researching my family tree. I have spent hours scouring genealogy websites researching my family history. I have even visited county courthouses researching birth records, marriage and death certificates and census data.  

There are church records too - these people, my ancestors, held tight to their faith and you can still see it in the countless records held in the small country churches they belonged to - baptism, confirmation, marriage - even the cemeteries with rows of headstones with matching last names.   

I’ve learned some amazing things, but aside from the names scrawled in the dusty leather bound books in cramped courthouse offices, the stories of how these people actually lived is what is fascinating to me. On a few occasions, I have had the chance to talk to distant relatives who knew the real life stories behind my ancestors. The stories teach me about their character, their obedience to God and their devotion to family.  

It is because of my fascination of our personal histories that Joshua speaks so much to me. Throughout Joshua, you read words like ‘inheritance’, ‘children’ and ‘ancestors’, and Joshua does many things in his life to try to stress to the people how important these stories are. He wants them to leave tangible reminders of their faith so their children, and their children’s children, will see the proof of that faith and obedience to God and mirror it. This obedience is fulfilled in his death, as shown in the verses just leading up to it. He made sure it was all recorded so it would live on in history. He made sure the people were faithful and would remember God’s good works for the people of Israel.  

I’d like to someday be remembered as the great great grandma who lived well into her nineties, was an avid gardener, loved to sing in church and lived as a faithful servant to God. I want to be remembered not only by the church documents with my name on them, by the census data and birth and marriage certificate, but by my good deeds and by the way I taught my children, and my children’s children to love and obey God.  

How do you want to be remembered?

Heavenly father, guide me to be an enduring example of your unending love.  Teach me your ways so I can in turn teach them to those who follow me.  Let my life serve as a reminder of your faithfulness and goodness.  Amen.