Hi, my name is Cathy, and I’ve been part of the Elder team with my husband Dale for the past two years. We have been part of Riverside since it was first planted 11 years ago. During most of that time we have also been part of the Missions team, and have traveled several times to Asha Children’s home in India.

The passage you are going to read today is Judges 2.

Israel has entered the promised land, and their leader Joshua has died. Without strong spiritual leadership in the generations that followed, compromise occurs as they continue to occupy the land. This begins a change in Israel’s relationship with God. The angel of the Lord appears to the people and speaks to them of their failure to drive out the inhabitants of the land, along with their idol worship and corrupt practices. God removes His agreement to help them conquer the land, and they are soon oppressed by those they allowed to remain. The people weep and are sorrowful for their disobedience. In God’s mercy, He raises up judges to save them from their oppressors. This sets the stage for a repeating cycle of sin, judgment, and repentance that is fleshed out in the rest of Judges.

Although God no longer gave Israel the upper hand with the inhabitants of the land, God’s overriding covenant with the people of Israel remained. His promise to make Israel a nation through whom the whole world would be blessed remained. Although the people strayed from God time and again, His promise remained steadfast.

What stands out to me in this passage is that just as God showed mercy to the people of Israel, He has done the same for us. Instead of giving us the judgment that we deserve, He showed His mercy by providing an escape from the penalty of sin and death, through Jesus Christ.

Now do the Know, Be, Do method of studying the chapter.

• KNOW (What does the text say about God?)

• BE (What does the text say about us?)

• DO (What is the text calling me/us to do?)

Hi, my name is Shelley and I have been part of Riverside since its beginning. I am the wife of Keith and mother of a slew of teenagers; I cannot keep their ages straight!

Today’s passage comes from Joshua 5:10-6:27.

At the end of Chapter 5, we see a Commander of the Lord’s army come and visit Joshua. I don’t know about you, but I have never had this happen to me and I cannot quite imagine what it would feel like. I am guessing I would be similar to Joshua and end up face down in reverence. What a humble stance for Joshua to be in, as in the next chapter he heads into a tough situation.

In Chapter 6, we see the Israelites head to the city of Jericho. God has commanded them that this city will belong to them.

The Lord speaks to his people and gives them very specific instructions, which I have to believe they looked at each other and wondered what they were doing. Walking around the walls? No talking? For how many days?

I don’t know if you had ever had a point in your life when you asked God these same questions. Maybe it was “Move to where?” or “Bring up Jesus to that friend?” or even “ That much money to give away?”

I am pretty sure if you have followed Jesus for any amount of time, you have had one, or probably more, of these moments. To the world, walking around a wall each day for seven days seemed like a ridiculous way to fight and try to overcome a city. And I am sure that as Mary looked towards the birth of Jesus as an unwed single teenage mother, she questioned at times what God was doing. But you know what? It was God’s way. He has spoken clearly to Joshua and the Israelites and desired for them to trust him and be obedient.

Some of you may remember the old Veggie Tales episode about Jericho and the song titled “Keep Walking” -follow the link to get it stuck in your head all day! 🙂

I think at some point in our walk, this is all we can hold on to. To keep walking. When things are hard and there seems to be no end in sight, keep walking. When a global pandemic is happening and it seems like the end is nevercoming, keep walking. Keep listening for the voice of God, keep digging, keep putting one foot in front of the other. Keep leaning into the Word and God’s truth. I am pretty sure we will one day look back and be amazed at the walls that fell because we just kept walking in obedience to God.

• What are ways that God is calling you to keep walking?

• What are things you can look back on and thank God for walking with you through?

• Find someone to encourage today-encourage them to keep walking, keeping their eyes focused on the Lord.

I’m Marcie and I’m new to South Bend and Riverside. We moved here from Michigan in early October when my husband Andrew joined the staff at Riverside. Andrew and I have spent the last few months settling into our neighborhood just a few blocks West of downtown, with our five children.

The passage you are going to read today is: Joshua 3-4:9

We often hear about God parting the Red Sea for the Israelites to cross, but it was not the only time God intervened in a water hazard. Today we read about Joshua, following God’s commands to lead the Israelites and the ark of the covenant across the Jordan River. The passage says the Jordan was at flood stage, so imagine the roaring waters, overflowing, an inundation of water, and Joshua leading his people to cross. Common knowledge tells us that even drowsy, slow-moving rivers often hide a dangerous current in its depths, and here we see a visibly dangerous obstacle and the story of how God shows up in a big way!

Then in the middle of the trek, Joshua, with God’s instruction, tells twelve representatives to pick twelve large stones, that they then use as a testament, a sign, of the time the Jordan’s river stopped flowing. A pile of rocks to symbolize a miracle!

Advent is also a time full of signs and testaments of the God’s intervention into seemingly impossible obstacles in our lives. We fill our church and houses with symbols that prompt our children and others to ask, “What do these stones mean?” We spend our weeks, reflecting and preparing to celebrate the Light of the World coming into the world to continue His miracle work.

• Where have you seen God working in your life recently? What tangible object can you use to remind yourself of that work God is doing?

• Do you have ornaments on your Christmas tree that commemorate important events in your life? Take time to share about those events with others. How did God show up in those times? How was God faithful?

Hi, my name is Tamara and I have been on staff doing kids’ ministry for a little over a year now. I moved to South Bend from Vincennes, IN last August through connections at Camp Ray Bird. I began attending Riverside during the summer I first started working at Ray Bird. I live with my roommate, Azia, and our two kittens.

The passage today is Joshua 1-2. In Joshua 1, the Lord told Joshua to take his people and cross the Jordan River into the land that was to be given to them. God promised to give them every land that touched their foot and that no one would be able to stand against them. The Lord told them to be strong and courageous and to keep the law Moses gave to them, for He would be with them wherever they went. And so they did.

In Joshua 2, Joshua sent two spies to look over Jericho. The king of Jericho knew of this, so he sent a message to Rahab, telling her to bring out the men who entered her home to spy. But Rahab had hidden the spies and told the king that she didn’t know where they went. Rahab asked the spies to spare the lives of her family in return for her hiding them and they promised her so. Rahab let them down by a rope and told them to hide in the hills for three days. The spies told Rahab to tie a scarlet cord in the window so that they would be protected. She did so, and the spies returned to Joshua telling him everything that happened. They said “The Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands..”

God pursued Joshua and the Israelites and promised that He would stand with them and give them every place where they set their feet and that no one would stand against them. In Jericho, they were aided by Rahab, who God used as a model of hospitality, mercy, and faith.

Rahab assured the spies that Jericho was fearful of them because they knew the Lord had promised them the land of Jericho. The spies returned back to camp confident that the Lord was fulfilling His promise.

Read Joshua 1-2 and do the Know, Be, Do method of study for through the chapter.

• KNOW – What does the text say about God?

• BE – What does the text say about us?

• DO – What is the text calling me to do?

• Grab a piece of paper and write out the whole verse that you want to stick with you throughout the day today.

On this fourth Sunday of Advent, we light the final candle and reflect on Love.

• As you sit and relax with the Father this morning, say aloud the ways that the Father has demonstrated His love to you personally.

• Think back over this past year, how do you know that you are loved?

Hey Riverside Family! This is Ila, and I’m glad to spend this moment in the Advent season with you. If you don’t know me, I’m Benji’s other half. Folks can usually find me singing with the worship team, teaching the 3rd-5th graders, or keeping up with our four adventurous girls!

Today, we are going to read a portion of Numbers together. In this section, the Hebrew people have been freed from slavery in Egypt for at least two years now. The journey so far has been filled with God performing remarkable signs, displaying his power over all creation. The people arrive just outside the promised land and send out a scout from each of the twelve tribes to gather information on this land they are to inherit.

Let’s read to find out what these twelve men report back to their community: Numbers 13:26-14:25.

The promised land was rich and beautiful…but there were giants. Giants are scary! Ten of the spies work the whole community into a frenzy of disbelief and dread. No matter how many acts of power they’ve witnessed, they refuse to trust God. Because of fear and unbelief, the whole community is sent back to wander the desert.

Only Joshua and Caleb believed in God’s power and goodness to conquer the land. How frustrating it must have been for those two to wait 40 years and suffer through the disobedience of their community. Others saw the giants and believed that God’s gift was too dangerous. They finished their days on Earth never receiving the promise.

Caleb and Joshua saw past the giants and believed God’s gift was good. Their Father had already purchased it, wrapped it up, and slapped a bow on it. All the people had to do was believe enough to grab it and open it. Following Jesus can also lead us to face scary giants. May our faith be greater!

• Get out a piece of paper and list any current giants you are facing.

• Let’s lay these giants at the feet of Jesus. Write a prayer of faith, trusting God to fight these battles with you and for you.

Hi, my name is Andrew, and I am the “In” Pastor at Riverside. It is truly a gift to be called to oversee home groups, formation ministries, and connections. At 6’9”, I am one of the tallest people around, and though it once took up most of my life, I gave up my brief basketball career at age 16.

The passages you will read today are Exodus 25:1-9 and Exodus 40:34-38. The Lord told Moses to “…have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them” (Exodus 25:8). God wants to assure the Israelites that He is with them throughout their wilderness wanderings during their great forty-year exodus from the promised land. It is one thing for God to tell them He is with them, but it is another to show them. By building the Tabernacle, a beautiful yet portable central point for the presence of God, the people had a place to turn their eyes and know—the Lord is with us.

Centuries later, God’s people would need to be assured again that God is with us. But this time, God does not show up as a glorious presence on a throne behind tabernacle curtains, but as a baby in a cattle-feeding trough in a stable. This is the glory of the Lord’s presence, embodied in the awesome fragility of a newborn child. That God could somehow package the glory described in Exodus 40 in the frame of a baby is one of the primary reasons the hope of Advent is at the center of our life in God.

• What similarities do you see between the presence of God in the tabernacle and in the coming of Jesus? What differences do you see?

• Israel needed to see the tabernacle to be reminded of God’s presence among them. Christ was born in large part to assure us that God is with us. What is one way God makes His presence known in your life today?