Text: Joshua 1:7-8 ESV — 7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

• Good success is when you do it God’s way and the results of your pursuit are godly.
• Take these strong commands as your blueprint for having the godly, good success the Lord desires for all His children.

How to Have It

1. TALK it! — "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth."

• Watch your mouth—you believe what you say.
• Use your mouth—your mouth is a weapon. The Sword of the Spirit does not rest in your hand; it rests in your mouth.
  • "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits" (Proverbs 18:21 ESV).
  • "In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength" (Revelation 1:16 ESV).

2. THINK it! — "But you shall meditate on it day and night."

• You will always think about what you have talked about.
  • Words following thoughts are reactionary. Thoughts following words are intentional.
• If you don’t read it, you can’t speak it. If you don’t speak it, you can’t think it.

3. DO it! — "So that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it."

• If you talk about something and think about it all the time, you will eventually do it.
• Holiness is not a strain for those who constantly talk and think the Word of God.

4. MAKE it! — "For then you will make your way prosperous."

• To prosper is to get one step better in a given area. If your marriage gets better, you have prospered. If you take a step toward financial freedom, you have prospered. If you eat healthier, exercise a little more, and lose a little weight, you have prospered in your health.

5. HAVE it! — "And then you will have good success."