The people were finally moving forward in their Land only to have Joshua encounter a stranger with whom he wasn't acquainted:
Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?" The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so (Joshua 5:13-15).
As any military man would ask, Joshua wanted to know who this man was so he could determine if he was on Israel's side or not. That's when the man revealed that he wasn't a man at all; he was the captain of the Lord's army. He then instructed Joshua to take off his sandals as the voice had told Moses to do at the burning bush. This indicates the "man" was none other than God Himself!
God has to open all of our eyes to see things as they are and not as we assume them to be. And sometimes it's easy to think we're just dealing with other people when we're really dealing with God Himself. Perhaps that's why Paul prayed, "I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe" (Ephesians 1:18-19). The challenge is that we often aren't aware our eyes need to be opened. That's why it's best to assume they do need opened—that there's something you aren't seeing—and seek God's help.
What don't you see? Is it your purpose and its or your power to impact others? The significance of your creativity? The power in setting big goals? Ask God to show you what you can't see so that you aren't having your own encounter with the captain of the Lord's army but assuming it's just another everyday event. And then be ready to take off your shoes and worship for you will be standing on holy purpose ground.
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