confident commitment

Joshua 24:15
'But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” '

I love this verse. It displays a confident commitment. It seems defiant. Almost like Joshua is saying, 'whatever you lot do, I'm going to do this anyway!'

Joshua is clear where he stands.

He encourages the rest of Israel to follow his lead by reminding them of all of what God has done. How God has revealed himself to them and rescued them. Ultimately though, Joshua realises he can only be responsible for himself and his family. It's up to each family, each person what they choose to do.
This is not Joshua washing his hands of responsibility, he is still the leader of Israel, n
But even as leaders you cannot force people to do what you want, what you know is best. Each person has their own mind. Our responsibility, like Joshua, is to remind people who God is, remind them of the facts and warn them of a life without him.
Then what?
Then, like Joshua, we lead by example.

Joshua doesn't mind standing out from the crowd. Despite what the rest of the nation may decide to do, he knows where he stands. He has made a confident commitment to the one true God and it doesn't matter what anyone else may; do, say or think.

Sometimes, faith in God will call us to make a stand. Sometimes, we will need to stand out from the crowd and do things differently. Don't be ashamed to let others know why. We shouldn't apologise for our faith, we should stand for it. Joshua gives his reasons and then makes his stand.

We all have a reason for our faith. Sometimes this will mean we do or don't do things the same as everyone else. It will make us stand out and can make us feel uncomfortable, but don't let comfort dictate what you and your family stand for. Don't compromise your beliefs to go along with the crowd. No-one notices you in a crowd, and sometimes that's a nice idea, but how does that demonstrate who you are and what you believe?
There are increasingly more and more stories in the news about how Christians have taken a stand. Sometimes they are held up and ridiculed, but they are standing for what they believe. They realise their lives are about more than money or jobs or whatever else it is they are facing. These people, like Joshua, have made a confident commitment and by their actions they state, 'But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”.

Will you join them? Are you prepared to stand up for what you believe, no compromise? Stand out from the crowd and declare, 'But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”!