Second Banana

I will be with you as I was with Moses.

 - From Joshua 3

It's always hard to be the first to follow greatness. Hosni Mubarak had the misfortune of following Anwar Sadat as President of Egypt. True, he lasted decades, while Sadat was assassinated only a few years into his term. But where Sadat was electric and visionary, Mubarak was stale and unimaginative. 

Adams followed Washington. Johnson followed Lincoln. Bush followed Reagan. It's always hard to follow greatness.

When Moses died, the Hebrews must have felt a wave of fear and doubt. How could anybody match up to Moses and his legendary status? But it's interesting . . . . Legendary figures do indeed set the bar very, very high. But visionaries are normally only good at casting the vision and inspiring the people. They are not often very great when it comes to administering and . . . actually . . . running things. 

So God had to keep the people confident, by way of a show of favor and strength to Joshua. And as you read on, you will see that Joshua did, indeed, have some skills as an administrator. But first God had to do something akin to parting the Red Sea, by creating a land bridge across the Jordan River, to get them solidly into Canaan. Interestingly enough, there was a city on the banks of the Jordan, in the area where they crossed, called "Adam." They have returned to a place of beginnings. The name, literally, meant "red." Twice, God has miraculously enabled the Israelites to cross a red sea.

Now God doesn't take care of all leaders, as He did Moses and Joshua. But he does train us, when we need it. The goal always is, eventually to hand off the management of God's people to humans that can do the job. 

If you ever have to follow greatness, especially when you weren't expecting it, remember to pray. That is one position you may find yourself in, where God's help is essential.