Jesse Owens said, “A lifetime of training for just ten seconds.”  Training is critical.  At a fire safety seminar, employees gathered around the live demonstration area to watch the fire officer teach the proper way to operate a fire extinguisher. Barking out instructions like a drill sergeant, the fire officer yelled, "Pull the pin like a hand grenade. Then, aiming at the base of the fire, depress the trigger to release the extinguishing agent."  The fire officer demonstrated a few times and then picked from the group an employee to extinguish a controlled fire. The employee was nervous. He fumbled with the fire extinguisher, forgetting to pull the pin. He squeezed the lever. Nothing happened.  "Like a hand grenade," the fire officer hollered. "Remember? Like a hand grenade." The employee remembered. In a burst of confidence, he quickly pulled the pin...And heaved the extinguisher at the fire.

Josh. 5 is a time of mental preparation for the people of God to get ready to go to battle for the Lord.  The Israelites fought Jericho ~ we have our enemies ready to tear us down, our challenges, Satan’s road blocks... and we too must be spiritually prepared.  Any time we face transitions in life, we face battles.  And the most important battle is within ~ The real battle is not Jericho, the real battle is the heart of Joshua/ the heart of the people.  

A Legendary Story ~ An army spent years building boats in preparation for a war. Upon arrival on the shores, the general turned around and demanded that his troops burn the boats they’d spent years building.  “But why?” his soldiers asked. “We will have no escape if things get bad.”  “Exactly,” the general replied. “You win or you die.”  Burn the Boats!

40 years earlier the Israelites escaped into the wilderness from the Egyptians by crossing the Red Sea on dry land.  The sea parted and the nation walked to the other side on dry land.  As the Israelites stepped out of the Red Sea, the waters rushed back, drowning the Egyptians that chased them.  Now, as the Israelites step out of the Jordan, the same thing happens: READ Josh. 4:18.  The major difference between the Red Sea and the Jordan:  When Israel crosses the Red Sea and the Sea returned to normal, the Red Sea becomes a protection from the enemy.  When the Jordan River returns to normal, there is no longer a path of escape.  The boats have been burned.  

Slide 1- Video (Click on the "start Prezi" button then on the  "right" arrow to see the video, and then for each slide corresponding in the notes hit the arrow again...

Slide 2-

Today’s message is titled, It is Grace.  You may know Grace as a name, Grace to you might be what you say before you eat, it could be an ideal you live your life by.  I have been a Christian for 13 years and in ministry for 10 of those 13 years, I have studied the Bible intensively for my degree at Bible College for the past four years but I still don’t have a handle on Grace.  Sometimes I get glimpses of Grace in my relationships, with my wife, my children, my parents, my in-laws, through my friends.  Though I strive for Grace to be my first response that is not always the case.  Grace is an action, a motive, a feeling, grace can be expressed in tears and in laughter.  I could define grace to you theologically, biblically, and even theoretically but I feel it is safer to let Jesus define grace to us today.  I would like to bring our attention to the response of the person who receives God’s grace in our story.  The theme of our message today has to do with gratitude.  If you remember one thing from today’s sermon it is this, “Gratitude is evidence of God’s forgiveness, evidence of God’s grace.”       

A lot of people enjoy road trips ~ it’s the unexpected surprises that often provide the most memorable moments, the amazing scenery, even the problems add to the experience. 

While on a car trip, an elderly couple stopped at a roadside restaurant for lunch. After finishing their meal, the elderly woman left her glasses on the table, but she didn't miss them until they were back on the highway. By then, they had to travel quite a distance before they could find a place to turn around. The husband complained and complained all the way back to the restaurant. He was annoyed and mad at his wife for being so forgetful. When they finally arrived at the restaurant, as the woman got out of the car to retrieve her glasses, the man yelled to her, "While you're in there, you might as well get my hat, too."

Ever notice when people come home from vacation the first story is the flat tire, the severe thunder storm, the sickness.  The good Samaritan part of the story… the unexpected surprise…

Here’s the principle:  Even when you know the destination, the journey is full of unexpected surprises!   The destination may be Disneyland, but along the way you run into a detour and have to reroute, you stop early for lunch, you get up late.   Scott and Rachael decided to go to Chehalis and back last week-end and along the way the truck tipped onto it’s side.  Sally and I were almost to our new home in Pasadena when the car stopped and within minutes an angel helped us get to a gas station and on our way.  You know the destination, yet the journey is full of unexpected surprises!