Just Do It — Answering The Call - A Redeeming The Time Blog

Just Do It

By Grant Gaines

Companies will spend a countless amount of time, money, and research coming up with the not-too-hot, not-too-cold, but “just right” slogan. A slogan needs to be catchy, fun, and memorable. It needs to catch the heartbeat behind the company in as few words as possible. A good slogan has an endless lifespan, it breaks through generational, cultural, and racial barriers, and it has the ability to always be at the forefront of consumers’ minds as they shop for products.

Some companies have done a really good job with their slogans, others have done an awful job. The true litmus test of how well a company has done with their slogans is if a customer can look at the slogan and immediately know the brand name. So let’s play a little game and see how well these companies have done. Take a look at this list and see how many slogans you can recognize:

“I’m Lovin’ It,” “Have It Your Way,” “Eat Fresh,” “Save Money, Live Better,” “Fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance,” “Is It In You?” “Just Do It.”

I like that last slogan-“Just Do It.” Those three little words carry so much weight and can be applied to so many different areas in our lives. Stop complaining, stop worrying, stop debating, and just do it. When there’s something around the house that needs to be cleaned up, don’t wait for someone else to step up to the plate, just do it. Stop worrying about every little detail, stop calculating every single penny, stop living in fear of the future and just do it.

What a great slogan for us to live by! And you know what else is cool about this slogan? I think God is a pretty big fan of it Himself. That certainly seems to be the case in Joshua 7.

After the Israelites crossed over the Jordan River under the command of their new leader, Joshua, the Lord prepared His people to take on the Goliath-sized city of Jericho. God guaranteed the victory and assured the Israelites that despite the city’s massive walls and towering inhabitants that He was bigger than any opponent they would face. Before a single drop of blood was shed, the Israelites knew they had already captured the city because the Lord was fighting for them.

Knowing that His people would be eager enjoy the plunder of their first victory, God gave the Israelites one strict command in Joshua 6:18-19 (NIV) to, “But keep away from the devoted things, so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them. Otherwise you will make the camp of Israel liable to destruction and bring trouble on it. All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the LORD and must go into his treasury.”

That was the one single command the Israelites had to concern themselves with as they went into battle: don’t take the plunder for yourself. But just as Adam and Eve failed to keep the one single command the Lord gave them while they were in the Garden of Eden, the Israelites failed to keep this command.

Well actually, 99.99% of Israelites followed God’s command to not touch the plunder. But there was one man, Achan, who decided that he was above the law and took some silver and gold for himself. Even though the majority of the Israelites did the right thing, as the old saying goes ‘one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch’. And that’s precisely what happened as we continue to read Joshua 7, we discover that because of Achan’s sin (which at the time was unknown to everyone except God and Achan) the nation of Israel was now a sitting duck that was being picked apart and destroyed by nations much smaller than itself.

In response to this awful loss, Joshua and the nation’s leaders tore their clothes and hit their knees in prayer asking and pleading with God for help to turn around their fortunes (wouldn’t it be great if that is what our nation’s leaders did as well?).

Knowing God’s forgiving nature, you would think that the Lord would gently answer His peoples’ cries for help with the promise of peace in this difficult time, but that’s not the route God chose to take when He answered to Joshua’s prayers by saying, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face? Israel has sinned; they have violated My covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, they have put them with their own possessions. That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction” (Joshua 7:10-12, NIV).

Did you notice the first thing the Lord told Joshua to do in those verses? “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face?” (Joshua 7:10). In other words God was asking Joshua why he was praying. Isn’t that strange? Aren’t we supposed to pray about all things at all times (1 Thessalonians 5:17)? Yes, you are to pray at all times but don’t miss why God is telling Joshua to stop praying-because Joshua and the Israelite leaders were busy praying about something that God had already given them clear instruction on.

If you remember back to the Lord’s one command in Joshua 6, God clearly told Joshua and His people that if they took the plunder from Jericho that the Lord would turn His hand against them in their future battles. Joshua was asking for guidance on an issue that the Lord had already made abundantly clear. This is why God told Joshua to stop praying and start doing. Or to put it another way-just do it!

I believe we as Christians have formed a bad habit of using “I’m still praying about it” as an excuse not to do God’s will.

“I’m still praying about what church or Sunday school I should go to.” It’s certainly extremely important to find the right church and community but when “I’m still praying about it” causes you not to go to church in the first place, there’s a problem with your theology. “I’m still praying about whether I should go on that mission trip or not.” Certainly God doesn’t want you to go on every mission trip your church puts on, but when “I’m still praying about it” keeps you from going on or doing any mission work, you need to stop praying and start doing. “I’m still praying about whether I should forgive my friend or not.” Stop praying and start doing!

When we know what God’s will is (which is clearly revealed through His Word) we don’t need to sit around asking God if we should do this or that-just do it! Don’t let prayer become an excuse to keep you on the sidelines another day. Read God’s Word, learn His will, and just do it!