"However, there shall be between you and it (the Ark of the Covenant) a distance of 3,000 feet. (Do not come near it), that you may know the way you should go, for you have not passed this way before." Joshua 3:4

Finally, the Israelites are on the threshold of entering the Promised Land. Camped for three days for rest and instructions, they face one last formidable foe, the Jordan River at flood stage. In a detailed plan that required a miracle, they were told to spread out, to follow the Ark of the Covenant from a distance, and to walk through the miraculously parted waters on dry land to their promised land. Obedient to the letter, the Israelites crossed over on dry ground. The ark symbolized God's presence going before His people. Two months into a new year, we like the children of Israel "Have not passed this way before." It is new territory and we will need to focus on the Lord if we are to have safe passage through another year.