“And the LORD said unto Joshua, Fear them not: for I have delivered them into thine hand; there shall not a man of them stand before thee.” (Jos 10:8 AV)
Oh, what grace, when God can turn our mistakes into something great. Joshua had been deceived by the inhabitants of Gibeon. Hearing of Joshua’s success, these neighbors took pains to appear as though they had traveled from very far and were seeking a treaty with Israel. Joshua asked them who they were and where they were from. They never answered the first question and lied about the second. Joshua, believing they were far enough away they would never encounter them anyway, decided to make a treaty. They soon found out they were indeed neighbors and that the land in which they lived fell under the territory God promised to Abraham. The kings of the Amorites; five of them; gathered themselves against Gibeon because Gibeon had betrayed their fellow Canaanites. Gibeon sent messengers to Joshua for assistance. Since there was a treaty between Israel and Gibeon, they were obligated to come to their defense. This is where the above verse comes into play. God encourages Joshua that He brought these five kings together against Gibeon and that in one single battle, Israel would be rid of the Amorites. What the LORD did was take a mistake of Joshua’s and use it to ultimately defeat their enemies. It doesn’t justify the choice. It was wrong to make the treaty. Yet, in His infinite mercy, God took a mistake of a leader and used it to further His glory.
This sort of thing happens to me all the time. I am a very amateur cook. I watch cooking shows and think that I can do what they do. I learn what I can, consult the Flavor Bible, and dive right in. Every once in a while my flavor combinations or technique are simply not working. Perhaps I get a little bit cocky and add a flavor profile I think will work, but it does not. Other times, I may make a mistake with texture. Not enough or too much. Trial and error are a good teacher. However, rarely do we end up throwing out food. There is usually something one can do with a mistake to turn it into something edible. Perhaps a third or fourth flavor profile to mask the mistake. Or, another technique or texture to fix a dull dish. Unless the food is burnt beyond recognition, there is hope. There is something we can do to turn a horrible experiment into something that won’t offend.
As a father, teacher, pastor, boss, and any number of other leadership positions, I have made my share of mistakes. More than I care to admit. In retrospect, I can say that God has been very good to me despite all my screw-ups. He didn’t turn them all for good. Some I have to live with for the rest of my natural life. However, others were a miracle. When this happens, there are not a few emotions you experience. You experience great relief in that your mistake didn’t turn out to be as devastating as you thought it might be. You also feel a sense of adulation that something good could come out of something bad. There are often tears of joy that flow knowing that God can patch up our mistakes for His glory. Most of all, you feel a sense of awe at how God can take something you thought was a disaster and turn it into something of a success. Joshua and Israel had to live with the Gibeonites for quite a while. God did not completely undo the mistake. But He was able to use it miraculously. This is more than he deserved. And when the LORD does this for us, it is far more than we deserve, too. So, do not give up hope because you made a mistake. No matter how big it is, the LORD can use that lapse of judgment for His glory. And when He does, I hope you are like me and chuckle with joy at what God can do with such flawed instruments as you and I.
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