Juggling Fire

Some people just need a little prodding, you know? I love team-building workshops where you get to learn about why some people jump up and tackle a task and others sit back and wait for a different opportunity … or clearer direction in the form of pointed instruction: just get it done. That’s pretty much… Continue reading Bible studies for writers | Joshua 18

Joshua continues to divvy up the Promised Land to the Israelites. In this chapter, we learn how the allotments of the tribes of Manasseh and Ephraim get even more confusing. I just kinda threw my hands up on keeping track of these two. On a more clear and positive note, though, we do see a… Continue reading Bible studies for writers | Joshua 17

Remember from past chapters that the tribe of Joseph was split in two, and Ephraim and Manasseh now represent their father’s branch of the family. This itty-bitty chapter allots the land to Ephraim, and we can trace it along the eastern regions of present-day Israel. We see something else, as we did in the last… Continue reading Bible studies for writers | Joshua 16

Last things first today. Why couldn’t the Israelites drive out the Jebusites from Jerusalem? Another cliffhanger that may never be answered on these pages, but it will certainly be added to my list of questions to ask Jesus. Now, for the rest. Did you struggle a bit with all the names and directions and places… Continue reading Bible studies for writers | Joshua 15

Oh, sweet Caleb. Like Joshua, I have trouble picturing Caleb as an 85-year-old warrior. It must be his name as well. Caleb sounds like a sweet young man, but Caleb is no doubt a very mature, faithful and wise “hero of the Bible” for many reasons. One reason, as we can see here, is his… Continue reading Bible studies for writers | Joshua 14

Joshua records for us again the allotments of land for the tribes of Reuben, Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh. Moses already outlined these lands for us in previous books, but we can consider this documentation by Joshua a recap, much like a follow-up story in journalism. In fact, I was reading a story about… Continue reading Bible studies for writers | Joshua 13

What an amazing document! Yes, it’s kind of boring to read, but it says so much. For one, it may be the only living document that records these kingdoms and their one-time existence. I can’t help but compare this document to a little note I received this morning from a student/newspaper friend of mine. This… Continue reading Bible studies for writers | Joshua 12

I just love Joshua. Perhaps it’s his name, but I picture him a forever-young, strong soldier who rallies troops and just marches on and on unscathed and glimmering in his armor under the beaming sun of the Middle East. Too far? Ok, but seriously, Joshua has been around a looooong time. He is wise. He… Continue reading Bible studies for writers | Joshua 11

Why would any king, who had heard through the grapevine that the Israelite army could not and would not be defeated, dare to challenge it, especially when he knows the Gibionites managed to strike a peaceful deal? Pride, I’m guessing. Yes, the Gibeonites were alive, but they were an oppressed people group, subjected to fetching… Continue reading Bible studies for writers | Joshua 10

So, it’s ok to disobey the Lord when you make a promise to man then. I mean, that’s what the text says, right??? We don’t really know the outcome of Joshua’s decision to let the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites live, but we do know that God told the Israelites to let no… Continue reading Bible studies for writers | Joshua 9