Inquire of the Lord

The men of Israel sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the LORD. Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified it by oath. ~~ Joshua 9:14-15 NIV

How many times have each of us made a decision to regret it later? Oh my! I have so many times that I wish there was an "undo" button on life like there is in Microsoft Word. My husband and I have made decisions without seeking the Lord and it has cost us--both financially and emotionally.

Well scripture is full of these types of examples as well. Joshua followed Moses in leadership of the nation of Israel. He led them into the promised land--the land flowing with milk and honey. The Lord told him through Moses that He gave them the land. Joshua followed the Lord's commands and saw success in Jericho. (Joshua 6)

Then after cleaning the sin out of the camp, Joshua led the army of Israel to defeat the city of Ai. After this victory, Joshua set up an altar to the Lord and worshiped the Lord by reading to the whole congregation the Book of the Law. (Joshua 7 and 8)

After conquering two cities, word spread all throughout the land about Joshua and the Israelites. Many of the inhabitants planned to go to war with the Israelites, but the people of Gibeon planned a ruse against them. These people intentionally planned to deceive Joshua by wearing old and worn out clothes, taking dry and molded break, and old wine skins on their three day journey to meet Joshua.

When the people of Gibeon met with Joshua, they lied and said when they left the bread was fresh, the wineskins were new and their clothes were new, but now worn out from the long journey. They told Joshua they heard about their fame because of the Lord their God. They sought to have a peace treaty with Israel.

Based on what the men of Israel saw, they believed the men of Gibeon. Therefore, they entered into a peace treaty with them. Then only three days later the Israelites learned that the Gibeonites were neighbors with them. (Joshua 9)

After experiencing success, we can be deceived into believing something is good for us. We've experienced some really convincing sales calls that sounded really enticing. Yes, we've spent too much money on products or memberships that we did not need that led to remorse.

We've learned through experience that we need to inquire of the Lord before making decisions. I've been learning that that offer will still be available. If not, then perhaps it was not a deal that I needed anyway.

I am starting to realize that it is more beneficial to inquire of and wait on the Lord than to rush into a decision that will lead to regrets later. We can take time to inquire of the Lord.