Joshua 7:6-12 -- Falling On Your Face and Asking Questions

HIS WORDS

Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the Lord until the evening, both he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust on their heads. Joshua said, “Alas, O Lord God, why did You ever bring this people over the Jordan, only to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? If only we had been willing to dwell beyond the Jordan! “O Lord, what can I say since Israel has turned their back before their enemies? “For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it, and they will surround us and cut off our name from the earth. And what will You do for Your great name?” So the Lord said to Joshua, “Rise up! Why is it that you have fallen on your face? “Israel has sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them. And they have even taken some of the things under the ban and have both stolen and deceived. Moreover, they have also put them among their own things. “Therefore the sons of Israel cannot stand before their enemies; they turn their backs before their enemies, for they have become accursed. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy the things under the ban from your midst.

MY WORDS

Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the LORD along with all the elders of Israel until evening. They put dirt on their heads, and Joshua said, "My goodness, LORD! Why did you even bring this people across the Jordan? Was it so we would be victims of the Amorites and be wiped out? Why didn't we just stay and settle on the east side of the Jordan? Lord, What can I say since Israel has been run off by its enemies? When the Canaanites and all the others living in this area hear about this, they'll all gang up on us and annihilate! What is that going to do for Your reputation? 

God said to Joshua, "Get up. Why are you on your face? Israel has sinned they have disobeyed My covenant which I commanded them. They have taken plunder that is forbidden; they have stolen and then covered it up by hiding it away in their own stuff. The People of Israel cannot even look their enemies in the eye; they are plunder themselves! I cannot continue with you if you do not get rid of these cursed things. 

I WILL

Separate the precious from the worthless in my listening prayer time today. You told me some specific things to do. Then some things were discovered yesterday that made me realize that I am holding on to some "forbidden plunder" in my heart. Somethings are just forbidden for me to do and go down, and I am perilously close to going down GOOD roads that are not BETTER roads for me to go down. I need to just LISTEN and OBEY - - No more and no less!