God’s blessings and victory sometimes come in interesting packaging. When Moses was going to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, he kept hitting roadblocks with Pharaoh. These were challenging times for Moses but God told him that he hardened Pharaoh’s heart. So much so that even after they left Egypt, he came running after them. What Pharaoh did not know though was that he was being lured into his destruction and those of his armies.  In today’s Bible reading, we see that Joshua and Israel had to fight their way into all the areas of the promised land that God gave to them. The excerpted text showed that the Lord hardened the hearts of those people to come fight with Israel so that they can be destroyed completely. This assures me then that it is possible to encounter challenges on the path to God’s promises for you. Often, this is because God wants to make the victory perfect and beautiful and to save you from unhealthy alliances that could contaminate the promise in future.  So, just because you face challenges does not mean that it is not God’s promise to you. Instead, it may be heaven’s packaging of the ultimate victory. When God promises then it is done. 

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you because you are the intentional controller-general of the universe who knows the end from the beginning. Lord, I receive grace to rest in your promises even in the face of challenges on the way to my victory in you in Jesus name 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾. ‎