March 31, 2010
Whose Report Will You Believe?
Sharon Jaynes
Today's Truth
"We should go up and take possession of the land," they said, "for we can certainly do it…If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us" (Numbers 13:30, 14:8 NIV).
Friend To Friend
This month, I've been talking a lot about faith. Believing God…it's what takes us into our personal Promised Land. In the Old Testament, God brought the Israelites out of the bondage of Egyptian slavery. Moses led the people under the blood-stained doorframes of the Passover, across the dry land of the Red Sea, and into the land flowing with milk and honey. The travelers witnessed God part the sea, rain down quail from heaven, scatter manna on the ground, and pour water from a rock. He guided them by a fire at night and a cloud by day. And yet, when it came time to march into the Promised Land, the land that was theirs for the taking, they faced a crisis of belief.
"Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites," God instructed Moses. So Moses sent twelve spies to scout out the land. When they returned, ten gave the following report:
"We went into the land where you sent us and it does flow with milk and honey!" they said. "But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large…We can't attack those people; they are stronger than we are…The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size…We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them" (Numbers 13:27-33).
But two of the spies, Caleb and Joshua, believed God. "We should go up and take possession of the land," they said, "for we can certainly do it! If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them." (Numbers 13:30, 14: 8, 9).
Guess whom the people believed? They believed the "evil report" - the ten men who did not believe God rather than the two men who did. God had already given them the land; the people simply had to move forward and posses it. But instead of moving into the Promised Land, they wandered in the desert for the rest of their lives. That entire generation of adults died in their unbelief, except for Caleb and Joshua.
But when the next generation came along, they believed God and moved into the Promised Land that their parents never saw. We can be just like that unbelieving generation - saved from slavery but wandering in the desert of unbelief. I have an acronym for fear: False Evidence Appearing Real. They only saw the giants, but failed to see Almighty God.
Oswald Chambers notes:
Human frailty is another thing that gets between God's words of assurance and our own words and thoughts. When we realize how feeble we are in facing difficulties, the difficulties become giants, we become like grasshoppers, and God seems to be non-existent. But remember God's assurance to us: "I will never …forsake you." Have we learned to sing after hearing God's keynote? Are we continually filled with enough courage to say, "The Lord is my Helper," or are we yielding to fear?
So here's my question to you. Whose report are you going to believe? Are you going to believe God's Word is true, or the enemy who tries to stop you from entering your own Promised Land because of fear?
Satan says, "You can't do it." God says, "I already have."
I don't want to be like those Israelites who didn't believe God. Do you? Are you going to move into the land flowing with milk and honey - take God's promises and make them yours? Or, are you going to believe the evil report and continue wandering around in the desert - free from slavery, but missing the Promised Land? Whose report are you going to believe?
Let's Pray
Dear LORD, forgive me for being like the Israelites who didn't believe You. Forgive me when I focus on the giants in the land rather than the giant-slayer. Today, I commit to take You at Your Word. I'm believing God today and moving forward to take the land You have already given me!
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
Now It's Your Turn
If you were listening to the two reports mentioned in today's devotion, which one would you have believed?
Hindsight is 20/20 and most of us would cheer, "I'd believe Joshua! I'd believe Caleb!" But I wonder. Do we believe God's promises even now?
What promises of God do you need to believe today?
Sometimes it is good to write them down. I'd love to hear your answers. Let's chat. Click on www.facebook.com/sharonjaynes to share your response.
More From The Girlfriends
One of God's beauty secrets is faith. I don't know about you, but sometimes I just need a "faith lift." If that's where you find yourself today, let's go to God's spa together. Join me on the journey of a lifetime in Becoming Spiritually Beautiful and discover the inner glow you've always longed for!
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Originally published Wednesday, 31 March 2010.
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