This exploration of Joshua chapter 5 confronts us with a profound truth: God's pauses in our lives are purposeful, not punitive. As the Israelites stood at their most vulnerable moment—circumcised and unable to fight, camped at the very gates of their enemies—God was teaching them that His strength is perfected in our weakness. The sermon unpacks the deep significance of circumcision as more than a physical act, but as a covenant renewal, a cutting away of Egypt's influence and faithlessness that had plagued the previous generation. We're challenged to examine our own lives: Have we gotten so comfortable in God's blessings that we've forgotten to tell the next generation about His miraculous provision? The sobering reality that 'there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord' serves as a wake-up call for parents and believers today. When God brings our plans to a screeching halt, it's not punishment—it's preparation. He's rolling away the reproach of our past, renewing His covenant with us, and positioning us to witness His power in ways we never could if we relied on our own strength. The question isn't whether God can use us, but whether we're willing to be wholly devoted to Him, even when it means waiting, even when it means vulnerability, even when it means letting Him cut away everything that keeps us from moving forward in faith.