This passage is about preparation—God's people are preparing before they rush ahead into the promised land. God has set them aside and marked them with the sign of the covenant, but a vitally important factor is that the people obediently and thoughtfully prepare for their next steps. This should be a tremendous encouragement to us: God has plans for us, for our children, and for our church. He has set us aside and promised to never leave nor forsake us. We should be eager to see what God would have of us. My prayer as we work through this passage is that we would be careful in our preparation—examining what God has called us to, evaluating our next steps, and encouraging one another to faithful obedience to the Lord.

The theme of worship will be at the forefront as we make our way into Joshua 4. The worship we see exemplified in Joshua is similar to the themes of worship that we see throughout all of Scripture: worship is something otherwordly. Worship is also quite powerful, both for us and for the rest of the world. It should be no suprise that God's people are constantly called to worship, and I pray that we may be thoughtful and galvanized as we worship God together!

The topic of worship will become a very poignant theme in the book of Joshua as we make our way into chapter three this week (the first of a two-part account that includes chapter four). One question that these passages will answer is "how should we follow and worship God?" God's people have always been called to be bold-yet-careful in our worship, and the following passages will encourage us to reflect quite a bit on how God wants to be worshipped.