Pastor Bell's Words To Live By

A good leader must have a great mentor. However, the problem with having a great mentor is the tendency to copy all what they did and to try to emulate their actions and mannerisms. When Moses led the people out of Egypt, it is estimate that there were more than one million people including women and children [there were six hundred thousand men, Ex: 12:37); Joshua was by his side as his understudy. Throughout the forty years that they travelled around the wilderness, Joshua was by the side of Moses. Joshua saw the red sea parted in the early days by Moses listening to the voice of the Lord (Ex 14); he saw and tasted the bitter sweet water at Marah (Ex 15:22-26). He saw water flow from a rock and was instrumental in defeating the Amalekites (Ex 17:1-7), although there were not utterly destroyed at this stage (Ex 17:8-16).  Even though Joshua was mentored by Moses, God wanted him to be his own man, to have his own experiences and his own testimony to tell. So the Lord told Moses that he would not cross over to the Promised Land but Joshua would succeed him and fulfil this part of the plan (Deut. 31:1-9). In the beginning of the book of Joshua the Lord reminded Joshua that Moses was dead. This was rather strange, since eight weeks prior Moses had presented their new charge to them and they had spent the previous thirty days mourning his death. However, the Lord reminded Joshua that the old order was dead and it was now time for a new order to arise up and possess the land. Joshua needed his own mandate to stamp his own style of leadership on this new generation. So he needed to hear that Moses was dead and that he must be courageous in his new role. Although his mentor was now gone, God was still with him. To become a good leader ensure that you have a great mentor, someone who will spend time with you and will tell you the truth and challenge you about every aspect of your life. For example, who is questioning you about your prayer life? or about your marriage or your personal development? If the answer to these questions is no one, then you need a mentor. Read Joshua 4.