Numbers 13: 27-31
- And they told him, "We came to the land
to which you sent us; it flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. Yet the people who live in
the land are strong, and the towns are fortified and very large; and besides,
we saw the descendants of Anak there. The Amalekites live in the land of the Negeb;
the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites live in the hill country; and the
Canaanites live by the sea, and along the Jordan." But Caleb quieted the people
before Moses, and said, "Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are
well able to overcome it." Then the men who had gone up with him said,
"We are not able to go up against this people, for they are stronger than
we."
They were right there….on the outskirts of
the land God had promised them…so close to his promise…yet so far away. God had
told Moses to pick 12 leaders to ‘spy’ out the land…and so Moses sent them…with
instructions to scout out the people….the fruits…and the type of towns they had
built for themselves…so God could show them how great a land it was…and the best
way to overtake the people who already lived there.
They were gone for 40 days…and came back
excited about the land…but fearful of the people. Most of the spies saw the physical strength
of the people as a barrier….but Caleb saw the strength of the God they served.
He stood in the midst of all those fearful spies and spoke brave words to go up
at once and take it…just as God had promised it to them.
Sometimes we let the horrible circumstances of the world
beat us down…we are like those spies that saw the giants in their pathway as an
obstacle that they couldn’t beat. But Caleb remembered the great things God had
done for the Israelites already and saw the giants of the promised land as
grasshoppers to a God who had already done great things to bring them to this
good land. Oh how God must have smiled
as he gave his brave speech…and he must have strengthened Moses’ spirit too…as
he stood an ‘quieted’ the people…who were on the verge of another attack
against Moses for bringing them out to die in this place occupied by giants.
Once again I am guilty…I see myself as a grasshopper most
days…and don’t realize the power I could draw on from God if I were more like
Caleb. I am one of the other spies…who
says it can’t be done…who retreats and lets her fear keep me from realizing his
great blessings for me. I wonder just how many blessings I have missed because
I let Satan trick me into seeing those giants as more powerful than my God.
Father…I thank you for the reminder that I need to see you
as the most powerful thing in my life. Help me to stop limiting you with my
human ideas of what I should be able to do.
Help me be more like Caleb…and feel your power so strongly in my life
that I can face any giant you allow in my pathway. Help me remember what you
have done to bring me this far…so I can use it to get where you need me to go.
Amen.
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