Time of Progression-Part 2: Arise and Go Over

Moving from one place to another always involves change.  Whether spiritually, physically, emotionally or mentally, change is imminent to get from here to there.


And since moving forward is an action, it requires that we DO. 


Do something or stay where we are.


Consider Joshua after Moses had died.

And God said..."Moses my servant is dead.  Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving them - the children of Israel." Joshua 1:2

The word ARISE in the Hebrew is QUWM which means to arise, stand, rise up, stand up, become powerful, come on the scene, to be established, be confirmed, be valid, to be proven, to be fulfilled, to carry out.


God was calling Joshua to ARISE.  Moses was dead and it was Joshua's appointed time to stand up and be established in the place that God had planned for him.


But in order for Joshua to ARISE, to be established and fulfilled, there was something else he had to do.


He had to GO OVER.


In this scripture, the word OVER in the Hebrew is ABAR which means to pass over, to pass beyond, to emigrate, leave (one's territory), cease to exist, to become invalid, become obsolete, to be alienated.


Are you getting the picture?


Joshua had to leave his territory, what was familiar to him.  Life as he knew it had to cease to exist.  His old methods, way of thinking and doing things were now obsolete.  He had to leave the past in the past.  God was doing a new thing.


Joshua was staring his destiny in the face, and he had to take action.


God had already commanded him in Deuteronomy 31:23 to “Be strong and courageous, for you will bring the Israelites into the land I promised them on oath, and I myself will be with you.”


So when God instructed Joshua to cross over, it should have been easy for him to say yes and answer the call, right?


Let's take a look at a few verses after God told Joshua to cross over.


God says in Joshua 1:6  "Be strong and courageous..."


And again in verse 7 “Be strong and very courageous..."


And again in verse 9 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”


Even though Joshua had already proven to be a great leader while Moses was still alive, I can imagine that somewhere between verses 1 through 9 there was (possibly) a war going on inside of him.  "Do I go or do I stay?"...  "I can't do this!"..."Moses was a mighty man of God, how can I lead these people as he led them?"..."There must be some mistake."  "Oh, God!  Are you sure?"

But in verse 10 Joshua took courage as the Lord commanded and began giving instructions and preparing for his time of progression, his time to Arise and Go Over.


And when the time came, you can almost hear the excitement and level of faith in his voice as he told the people...."Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you!”  (Joshua 3:5).



He knew he was called and as he moved out in faith he was expecting God to show up!

and then...the LORD said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses." (Joshua 3:7)

God trusted and knew that Joshua was able to do what He was asking.


When Joshua made the decision to answer the call, he learned personally that God is a Keeper of  His promises.  He trusted God with his whole heart and stepped into his destiny.


God is always faithful.  If He is telling you to do something, He will not ask you to go alone.

All He asks is that you go, and when you go...


Be strong and courageous.


Be strong and very courageous.

It is time to move forward into the plans and purposes that God has for you (and me). 


It is time to ARISE and GO OVER!

God still speaks.  I know you hear Him. 

What is it that He is asking you to do? 

Time of Progression - Part 1

I'm finding a familiar theme in my writing these last few weeks. Somewhat hidden among paragraphs and sentences, I've discovered a word and/or phrase that I believe will hold true for much of the body of Christ this year, if they so choose.


The word that keeps appearing on my blank pages and resounding in my ears is progression. Whether forward progress, moving forward, forward movement, or taking a step forward, it's all the same.  The words began to fit together for me like a jigsaw puzzle. 


I feel like this is going to be a Time of Progression.


Progression: 


*Definition- the act of progressing; forward or onward movement; advancement


*Synonyms - advancement, boost, break, breakthrough, development, evolution, forward march, going forward, giant strides, growth, headway, improvement, promotion, step forward


Let me just say, I get excited when I study words.  And this list of synonyms is reason for a little shouting!


On a hunch, (aka....slight nudge from Holy Spirit) I took one of the synonyms...evolution...and expanded a little more.  Are you ready for this?  You're not driving and reading are you?  If so, you might want to pull over.


*change, enlargement, expansion, flowering, growth, increase, maturation, transformation, unfolding


My. Oh. My.


Can you feel it?  God is wanting to do something big in and through His people this year.  And He's wanting His people to do something big in Him this year. 


Of course, there are pre-requisites.  We'll get to those a little later.


And just to make sure you understand, I thought I'd let you in on something else I found.


Since we got excited over a few synonyms, it's only fair that we give equal time to some antonyms.


*blockage, hesitation, withdrawal, decrease, halt, stoppage


So, basically, the opposite of progression , or moving forward (enlargement, expansion, growth, maturation, transformation), would be blockage, hesitation, withdrawal, decrease, halt, stoppage.


Makes perfect sense.


In Exodus 14, God had delivered the children of Israel out of Egypt, but at the first sign of trouble, they became very afraid and began to cry out to Moses..."Have you taken us out here to die?  Why?! We would have been better serving the Egyptians!" 


I can hear it today...


"Why, God?  Why did you bring me here if I was just going to get hurt?  Why is it so hard?  Can't you see the enemy trying to attack me?  I would've been better off staying where I was."

V.15 - And the Lord said to Moses, "Why do you cry to Me?  Tell the children of Israel to go forward." (emphasis mine).

**The Hebrew word for forward in this verse is Naca, which means to pull out, pull up, set out, journey, remove, set forward, depart, lead out, cause to spring up.


They had been delivered from bondage, but they couldn't stop.  Action was required.  They had to depart from where they were, and move forward in order to step into what was next for them.


There are many scriptures in the Bible where God had already given the victory, but the armies of the Lord had to take action, and go forth, go forward, advance in order for the victory to become reality.  In other words, God had a plan and made a way, but He didn't just do it for them.


So God has a plan and has made a way for me, for you...our victory is certain, unless we stay where we are.  This will have a different meaning for each of us.  He wants to mature us, enlarge us, expand us, grow us, increase us, transform us.  What instruction is God giving you?  Where is He telling you to go?  What is He telling you to do, to get rid of, to repent of, to speak, to pray, to teach, to write, to apologize, to ___________?   What is the action He is requiring of you?  Only you know.


This year will be a time of Progression for many.


A year of Progression for those who say yes.


A year of Progression for those who push through their fears.


A year of Progression for those who aren't afraid of change.


A year of Progression for those who will hear God, and obey.


A year of Progression for those who turn a deaf ear to man's opinions.


A year of Progression for those willing and obedient.


A year of Progression for those who allow God to transform the ruins in their lives.


A year of Progression for those who find their place near God.


A year of Progression for those who do more than talk about what God has told them to do.


The choice is yours.  You can move forward.  I heard in my bible study this week from Beth Moore that we are the greatest obstacle we will face.  Sad, but true.  Don't be the reason you miss your destiny.

Jeremiah 7:24 - "But they would not listen to and obey me or bend their ear (to Me), but followed the counsels and the stubborn promptings of their own evil hearts and minds, and they turned their back and went in reverse instead of forward."

Help me, God, to hear you and obey and move forward with you.


To be concluded.....Stay tuned for Part 2: Arise and Go Over!.....coming soon....


*from dictionary.com
**from biblestudytools.com