When Noah was 12 or 13 years old, I looked out the front door and caught him with binoculars pointed at the dirt road. First, I took a picture (because things like this were typical with Noah). Then I asked what he was doing. “They’re spying on us, so I am spying on them.” Plain and simple. There was a pickup parked at the end of our driveway. The driver was looking at our place with binoculars. So Noah obliged and returned the favor.
**See, the Lord your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, told you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” Then all of you came to me and said, “Let us send men ahead to spy out the land for us and bring back a report about the route we are to take and the towns we will come to.” The idea seemed good to me; so I selected twelve of you, one man from each tribe. They left and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshkol and explored it. Deuteronomy 1:21-24
Moses knew what God told him to do, but he also knew the hearts of the people he was leading. They hadn’t been delivered from Egypt any time before they forgot God’s miracles and started grumbling against Moses and God. God, in His wisdom, gave Moses back up. He had two faithful leaders of tribes as side-kicks he could count on, Caleb and Joshua.
**These are the names of the men Moses sent to explore the land. But Moses gave Hoshea, son of Nun, the name Joshua. Numbers 13:16
Hoshea means “salvation,” Joshua means “YAHWEH is salvation.” In Jewish tradition it is believed that Moses is changing Joshua’s name with an implied meaning of “May God save you from the conspiracy of the scouts.” Moses was safeguarding Joshua’s heart to before he ever sent spies into the Promised Land to scout it out and bring back news. He was trying to keep Joshua’s heart from being tainted and discouraged as the other spies cried and complained.
**When Moses sent them to explore Canaan, he told them, “Go through the Negev and then into the mountain region.
–See what the land is like and whether the people living there are strong or weak, few or many.
–Is the land they live in good or bad?
–Do their cities have walls around them or not? — Is the soil rich or poor?
–Does the land have trees or not? Do your best to bring back some fruit from the land.” (It was the season when grapes were beginning to ripen.) Numbers 13:17-20
Those were Moses’ questions. Many times, God impresses something in our hearts for us to do to bring Him glory. What is our gut reaction? We ask questions about the results before we even take the first step into the land God is giving us.
We send in the spies.
— What if no one comes?
— What if I fail?
— What if no one reads it?
— What if I cannot do this?
— Why, oh why do I think this is something I can do??
— Did God REALLY ask me to do this?
**Forty days later, they came back from exploring the land. They came back to Moses, Aaron, and the whole community of Israel at Kadesh in the Desert of Paran. They gave their report and showed them the fruit from the land. Numbers 13:25
**This is what they reported to Moses: “We went to the land where you sent us. It really is a land flowing with milk and honey. Here’s some of its fruit. But the people who live there are strong, and the cities have walls and are very large. We even saw the descendants of Anak there. The Amalekites live in the Negev. The Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the mountain region. And the Canaanites live along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and all along the Jordan River.” Numbers 13:25,27-29
**Caleb told the people to be quiet and listen to Moses. Caleb said, “Let’s go now and take possession of the land. We should be more than able to conquer it.” Numbers 13:30
Caleb told the people to shut up. He wanted to quiet the discouraging voices and remind them God had appointed as their leader and how faithful God was when He gave an assignment.
**But the men who had gone with him said, “We can’t attack those people! They’re too strong for us!” So they began to spread lies among the Israelites about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored is one that devours those who live there. All the people we saw there are very tall. We saw Nephilim there. (The descendants of Anak are Nephilim.) We felt as small as grasshoppers, and that’s how we must have looked to them.” Numbers 13:31-33
MISSION ABORTED…
And the entire nation of Israel paid.
God didn’t ask the Israelites to take the Promised Land for His sake. It was already His. He wanted to grow their faith. He had it set aside for His children, but they had to be obedient and take the first step.
**Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6
**It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; He will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” Deuteronomy 31:8
God repeated Himself in the two verses above. He knows we are hardheaded and might not get it the first time.
God has called me back to writing ON THE PORCH some. To be truthful, I have been fighting with it for a while. I have reasons why I am gun-shy, but honestly, I have listened to the reports and lies of the spies instead of keeping my focus on Jesus.
Is there is something God is calling you to do that you KNOW He has gone before you and prepared the way, but are still struggling? Continue to seek His face in the matter. Lay the binoculars down. Quit looking at the land ahead. Look up. Cancel the order for the spies. YOU DON’T NEED THEIR OPINION, God has already been there.
The people saw themselves as grasshoppers and their adversaries as giants. But God is the true giant, and our adversaries are grasshoppers. Forty years later, when they finally decided to follow God into the Promised Land, they marched and sang, and He did the rest.
**See, the LORD your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it as the LORD, the God of your ancestors, told you. “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” Deuteronomy 1:21
**No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. Romans 8:37
**No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. Joshua 1:5
LORD, help me lay the binoculars down and quit looking ahead at the giants I seem to be facing. Give me the courage to step out on faith, knowing that You will never leave me nor forsake me. If You bring me to it, You will bring me through it. Allow me to follow your lead, whether anyone else follows or not. My obedience is what You desire. Help me take the first step and allow You to go before me. I don’t have to reach the whole world, just those You bring to read this. For those who are struggling with stepping out on faith, hearing the voices in their heads telling them they are not good enough, I ask that You protect their minds and hearts, like Moses tried to safeguard Caleb from the spies. Remind them Who they belong to and Who gets the glory. Give them courage to take the first step in faith. Thank You for listening to us and going before us in all things. In Your Precious Holy Name, Amen.
P.S. Turns out, the “said spy” in our driveway was from the Lamb County Appraisal District. They were evaluating our house for tax purposes.
VEGGIE TALES: THE PROMISED LAND
P.S. Turns out, the “said spy” in our driveway was from the Lamb County Appraisal District. They were evaluating our house for tax purposes.
ON THE PORCH 