254 Joshua: Sun, Stand Still

Today, we’re going to be considering one of the most remarkable occurrences in all the Bible.  It happened on a day when an ordinary man asked an extraordinary God for a miracle of the highest order. He asked for the sun to stand still. And it did!

In Joshua 10, Joshua and his troops marched all night to come to the aid of their allies, the Gibeonites. A coalition of five kings had marched against Gibeon, seeking to take control of this strategic location before Joshua could occupy it. But Joshua’s move surprised the enemy, the Lord threw them into confusion, and the rout was on. 

However, as night approached, Joshua realized they were running out of time. If these armies escaped to their walled cities, he would have to conquer them one by one, a process that would cost him time and men. So, he offered a shamelessly audacious prayer.  He asked God to make the sun stand still.

And, amazingly, God did. Given the extra daylight, the Israelite victory became complete, and the door to southern Canaan was pushed wide open.

How this miracle happened, I don’t know. But one thing I do know is that if you grant me God, ANYTHING is possible!

If you have the audacity to ask, God has the ability to respond.

We all face difficult situations that appear to be impossible. It may be financial, emotional, relational, or physical. Whatever it is, God is bigger, and if God is with you in that thing, there is still hope.

If the size of your need is too big for you, it’s just the right size for God. Prayer is what moved the hand of God.  Prayer was what won the battle. 

But often we don’t see God move like He could or may want to, because we don’t ask. (Jms. 4:2) Maybe we don’t ask because we’re afraid of being disappointed. Or we don’t think we matter enough to God to ask big. We can ask for small stuff, but the really big stuff? 

Yet your prayers matter more than we could ever imagine! And through those prayers, the impossible can happen.

God can do more in a moment in time than I can do in a lifetime of effort. Prayer doesn’t take the place of action. Joshua still had to fight! But because he prayed first, God moved. 

While we have every right to pray “sun, stand still” prayers, there are times that the answer isn’t what we’d hoped for.  God is not some cosmic genie, and prayer is not some lamp that we can rub to get our three wishes.

He is still sovereign, and He still has the last word, and that word may be “no” or “not yet.”

Even if the sun doesn’t stand still in your situation, the sun can stand still through your situation.

God can use your faith and persistence for His glory every bit as much as a miracle.

Text: Joshua 10

Originally recorded on October 23, 2016, at Fellowship Missionary Church, Fort Wayne, IN