I’ve read that Home Depot, Lowe’s and other home improvement retailers are doing bumper business during the quarantine. The reasoning? Two words…honey-do’s. Those home projects that have been put on the back burner for years are now staring people directly in the face and simply asking, what’s your excuse now? Millions of Americans definitely have the free time right now. Day after day, week after week off from work, off from school and with no definite date of when that free time might end. So, in the meantime, roll up those sleeves and get busy on that long list of honey-do's you’ve been meaning to repair or upgrade around the casa.
One thing I’ve noticed as I work on the honey-do list is that it never seems to end. Marge will make me a long list and as I cross off 3 things, two more magically show up at the bottom. In fact, I wonder if the list technically will ever end. It seems something is always breaking, needing repair or just gets outdated and needs upgrading. But what if you were to complete the list, absolutely. What if you were to say that you have completed the list in it’s entirety and you have absolutely nothing left undone. It’d be a pretty sweet feeling, huh?
Today in Joshua chapter 11 we see Joshua leading the Israelites in a massive battle campaign through the northern territory of the Promised Land. They first divided the land by gaining control of the central region and then secondly they focused on conquering the southern region. In fact, throughout history, many famous leaders have used this same “divide and conquer” tactic with great success, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Napoleon all followed the lead of how God led the Israelites into battle. We see today that Joshua continued in great obedience, perfectly executing what God instructed him and never wavering from God’s clear plan. In fact, one verse in chapter 11 tells us something about the execution and the completion that Joshua and the Israelites achieved in the Promised Land. Instead of them having a honey-do list lingering about with things unfinished, they finished the list…in its entirety.
“But every person they struck with the edge of the sword until they had destroyed them, and they did not leave any who breathed. Just as the Lord had commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and so Joshua did. He left nothing undone of all that the Lord had commanded Moses.” Joshua 11:14b-15
So, God had instructed Moses of all that needed to be done, Moses had then told Joshua and Joshua finished it all. He left nothing undone. He fully followed and completed the commands that God had given him. This idea of perfect completion started my mind turning about looking at the commands of God as a honey-do list. As we look at the instructions, commands, statutes and rules of life that God gives us in His Word, what would it be like to observe them and simply say, I have left nothing undone. Seems impossible, but how could we at least move in that direction? How could we move a bit closer to completing that list today? It seems there’s a few ways that we could start inching in that direction.
1) You can’t complete the list if you don’t have a list. Do you know what God is asking of you? If you don’t know, you can’t do it. The list that God desires of us lies in the open, in plain print and has sold more copies than any other book in history. More than likely you have several copies lying around your house right now…the Bible. Do you spend time in God’s Word? Do you read, study, discuss and meditate on what it says? Folks, if Marge told me to go fix 12 things around our house and did not give me a list, failure would be guaranteed. I’d be relegated to guessing and fixing things that I thought she might want to be fixed. Later I’d have to redo all the things I missed. Working backwards costs time, is inefficient and well, drives me crazy. The list that God has for you lies within His Word. But you have to open it up daily, read it, study it and then do it. The plan is simple, the list is apparent, but the execution can be impossible if you don’t know what it is.
2) Do you have a prioritized plan to work the list? When given a long list I always start by looking at all of the tasks and prioritizing, easy to hard. I usually like to do all the easy stuff first, get some real momentum going and then cruise right into the harder stuff with a full head of steam. As you’re looking at the commands of God, do you have a plan? I mean you wouldn’t start with serving as an international missionary if you’re not even a vital part of a local body of believers. You wouldn’t start by teaching a Bible class if your struggling with major sin issues in your life. There was a powerful exchange between Jesus and the Pharisees in which Jesus stressed the importance just this, the priority of when you choose to follow God.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.” Matt 23:25-28
You see, these Pharisees had poorly prioritized what it meant to follow the Word of God. They followed God’s commands in a superficial external manner, but their true internal actions towards God and others were horrid. Jesus says they were like sparkling clean cups on the outside, but the inside was filthy and grotesque. They were like shiny new coffins, bright and clean on the outside, but the inside held bones that were unclean before God.
Today, you can start working on the honey-do list that God has for you. But as you do you might be thinking what most people do, where in the world do I start? Well, I’ve got a great place for you to start. With a command that Jesus gave and He have it the greatest of priority. A command that if the world would follow, would change the very world we live in overnight. A command that if everyone checked it off their list as done, would transform every inch of this planet. If you are looking for a starting place on your list, start here:
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:36-40
God has a list for you today. Study it, prioritize and get busy. Start by loving God with all you are and follow it with loving everyone and treating them just as you desire to be loved and treated.
God bless you, if you’re reading this you are being prayed for.
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