A Long and Winding Road

A Long and Winding Road

Joshua 1-4

            Yes, I know it’s a long (and winding?) Scripture reading.  The trouble is, once you begin the story of Joshua assuming leadership of the Israelites, there’s no logical place to come up for air until he gets them across the Jordan River and into Canaan.  Once there, they can stop and catch their breath (and we with them) before attacking Jericho.

            Those of you of a certain age may recognize the source of this column’s title.  It’s the last song (but one) on the Beatles “Let It Be” album.  It was also their last #1 hit and one of the last songs Paul McCartney wrote for the group.  While the lyrics are about a man standing at the beginning of a long and winding road leading back to his lover’s door, McCartney penned the words at the time when tensions between the Fab Four were beginning to intensify.  Some believe that McCartney was reflecting the sadness he felt about the state of the Beatles’ relationship and the end towards which they were heading.

            The Israelites’ long and winding road, on the other hand, culminated in relief, accomplishment, and the end of tension.  Their long and winding road had taken them forty years to complete.  That was the time between crossing the Red Sea, which took them out of Egypt, and crossing the Jordan into Canaan.  Those of us who have read the first five books of the Hebrew Scriptures know it needn’t have taken them that long.  Their mumbling and grumbling, and their disobedience caused God to keep them in the wilderness until everyone who had left Egypt had died.  Even Moses was not spared, since he disobeyed God when he struck the rock to bring water rather than speak to it as God had commanded.

            Forty years is a long time, and we can imagine that some members of the wandering tribes, especially those born soon after the crossing of the Red Sea, must have wondered why they were being punished this way.  They must have been tired of a diet of manna and quail, with only water to drink, and the same scenery, day after day, as they wandered their way towards the Promised Land.  At times the promise must have seemed like a desert mirage, but with Moses’ leadership they kept moving towards the fulfillment of that promise.

            What joy they must have felt, what relief when they stood on the bank of the Jordan and looked across to the land God had given them!  We can imagine there must have been some trepidation as well.  Were they really going to make it?  Did God have more delays in store for them?  Once across the river would they be able to take possession of this land?  We can understand their misgivings.  Many of us have been in the same position as we anticipated the beginning of a new phase in our lives—a new job, a new relationship, a move to a new town.

            To their credit, when Joshua said “Forward!” forward they went.  Once across, they piled up twelve stones as a marker to commemorate how far God had brought them, and the beginning of a new life in a new land.

            Jesus’ long and winding road through the wilderness took forty days, not forty years, but being left alone with only the devil for company must have made it feel longer.  We know the temptations he faced were real, not some phony exercise in self-control.  Because Jesus faced temptation successfully, we know that walking in his strength, we can too.

            Our long and winding wilderness roads will most likely be less than forty years, and very likely more than forty days, but we will face wilderness experiences in our Christian journey.  What we can be sure of is that just as God was leading the Israelites through their wilderness, and just as God was with Jesus in his wilderness, God will be with us as we make our long and winding way to the promised land God has waiting for us.