Thursdays with Joshua

Read Joshua 8:14-17 – Now it happened, when the king of Ai saw it, that the men of the city hurried and rose early and went out against Israel to battle, he and all his people, at an appointed place before the plain. But he did not know that there was an ambush against him behind the city. And Joshua and all Israel made as if they were beaten before them, and fled by the way of the wilderness.So all the people who were in Ai were called together to pursue them. And they pursued Joshua and were drawn away from the city. There was not a man left in Ai or Bethel who did not go out after Israel. So they left the city open and pursued Israel. (NKJV)

Past successes can often be our Achilles heel in future opportunities. Here, the king of Ai thinks the battle is progressing just like the previous encounter. But his over‑confidence is costly. Yesterday’s strength becomes today’s weakness, and Joshua exploits that memory to his full advantage. We can make the same mistake. When we assume that yesterday’s strength will continue to be sufficient, we will soon find ourselves lacking. We must always continue to grow, always learn from both our mistakes and successes and always give our very best to the life before us. Only then can we continue to move forward, growing in the path our Savior sets before us. Over confidence never ends well.

– Dr. Mike Clarensau serves as Senior Director of the Healthy Church Network of the Assemblies of God.