Throughout history, God’s people have strayed without good leaders. They had the law, but still found it difficult to follow without a strong leader. We have the law too, but we also have Jesus. He is the Good Shepherd who guides and cares for us, but also laid down His life to save ours. Then, he gave us the Holy Spirit and the church. The elders are supposed to shepherd His flock and we are supposed to be good sheep who listen to them and don’t make their job difficult. So, we don’t have to be like the Israelites who go astray without a leader. We have the Bible to guide us, and in it Jesus’s example, and we have the church.

Everyone in our story today takes the easy way that they want instead of the way that God told them to do things. Micah doesn't want to travel for worship so he makes his own house of God and hires his own priest and the tribe of Dan don't want to fight the people in their allotted land because it's too hard so they conquer a vulnerable group of people up north instead and take their land. They also steal from Micah so they can have their own house of worship and their own priest so they won't have to travel now that they have moved so far up north.

We should always ask God what He wants first and go His way instead of our own. But also, we must be careful not to make worship about ourselves instead of God. Then there is a reason we go to church and don't worship at home like Micah. We need each other and we will talk about why..

Superficial head knowledge of God will not be enough for you to follow Him faithfully. We must grow past that to a deeper more personal understanding of who He is. The more we know Him, the more we will love Him, and the more we love Him, the more we will want to serve Him. This is the AWANA motto and it definitely pertains to this lesson. This is a long lesson so maybe you can listen to it in increments because it's so good!

God does not force us to follow Him. We have a choice. But we cannot choose to go our own way then expect to reap His benefits. We live with the consequences of whichever choice we make. With Him comes many benefits, but if we don't choose to commit ourselves to Him, then we won't receive them. We can't just make Him our Savior. We must also make Him our Lord. Then we do this in front of witnesses so they can remind us of our commitment if we begin to go our own way. This is comparable to marriage. We commit ourselves to each other in front of witnesses so they can remind us of the promise that we made before God and man to stay together until death do we part. Then, we must be faithful to them if we want the benefits of that marriage. Otherwise, we can leave and see if that relationship is more fulfilling. But we can't have both a family and a relationship on the side. So, it is with the Lord. He says He's a jealous God, desiring our faithfulness and full commitment.

Be careful about making presumptions. How deep is your desire for God and His people? Are you willing to defend Him? When do we confront other people about their sin and when do we keep our mouths shut? Who do we confront and how do we do it in the right way?

The Israelites almost went to war with the eastern tribes because they thought they had done something against God. But after confronting them, they realized these tribes did what they did because they loved God and wanted to remain close to Him and HIs people. They were both zealous for their God and all that passion almost dissolved into a civil war. It is obviously good to passionate about our relationship with God and also be willing to defend Him. But we need to make sure we have all the facts first, and we need to do it in the right way, at the right time, with the right people.

Israel is the Promised Land on earth but Heaven is our eternal Promised Land. Place your faith in Him and you will inherit this land.

Are you willing to work for what you want or would you rather complain and make excuses? Life is not always fair. But complaining about it won't change anything.

God literally fights for the Israelites when He sends hailstones to kill their enemies. He also stops the sun at Joshua's request. God has power! But more subtly but no less miraculously, He gave the Israelites the stamina, endurance, and strength to travel 20 miles uphill overnight, then fight victoriously for a longer than ordinary day. God equips us for what He calls us to.

When we are faced with a decision, God should be the first One we go to. The Israelites got themselves in a bind because they relied on their own logic instead of asking God. Based on that, they made an oath in God's name and they couldn't break it.

We start this year with encouragement to put the past behind us and begin the year committed to following Jesus. Repenting of the past allows us to move forward confident and at peace. Then we talk about why God doesn't tell us everything we want to know and how we can trust and patiently obey anyway.