Tag: Wilderness

Wilderness Wanderings – Part 2

Featured ~ Sowmya Gali

Numbers 33: 51 – 53

“Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you cross over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their figured stones, and destroy all their molten images and demolish all their high places; and you shall take possession of the land and live in it, for I have given the land to you to possess it.

Numbers 33: 55 – 56

‘But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then it shall come about that those whom you let remain of them will become as pricks in your eyes and as thorns in your sides, and they will trouble you in the land in which you live. And as I plan to do to them, so I will do to you.’”

Caleb and Joshua were the only two people from the original group of Israelites that entered the Promised Land because they fully obeyed the Lord and fully believed in Him. The Lord, in His anger towards these unbelieving Israelites, caused them to wander in the desert of Sinai for forty years until the last person of that evil and unbelieving generation died. Yet, in His loving kindness, God continued to protect them from enemies and the weather, and provided them sumptuous food and water. He cared for them so much that the clothes and shoes they were wearing did not wear out for those forty years.

God’s commandment for the Israelites when they entered the Promised Land was that they should drive all the people and destroy their idols and high places. Only then they could possess the Land. The Canaanites were idol worshippers. Almighty God did not want the Israelites to be part of that pagan culture. He just redeemed them from the idolatry of Egypt. He wanted a nation that fully followed Him, obeyed Him and worshipped Him. His instructions were clear: no idol or high place should be present in the Promised Land. He will never share His glory with another.

We, as believers, in Jesus Christ, have been redeemed from the idols in our past. We must completely destroy each and every idol that we worshipped in the past. We used to serve at the feet of the idols of success, money, fame, health, etc. All those gave us temporary fulfillment but there is no lasting satisfaction. They may have consumed us. We may have been accustomed to having them around and in us. However, each time, we’ve come to the end of ourselves. And yet failed to recognize that our deep desires are only fulfilled in Christ.

When we enter into the Kingdom of God, we are supposed to drive out all these old habits, demolish all those idols which we held close to our bosoms, and destroy every trace of our old self. If we failed to do that, then these same habits, demons of the past, become snares, stumbling blocks and thorns in our sides. All what God promised, we won’t be able to possess completely. We cannot be sailing in two boats. We cannot have one foot in the world and one foot in the Promised Land. Jesus Himself said that “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9: 62).

We must be willing to take a full head-long plunge into the Promised Land. Looking back to our old life, stoking our old habits thinking they are harmless, revisiting our old sins are all symptoms of one foot in the Kingdom and one foot in the world. If we are not fully enjoying the blessings of God in our lives at the moment, we must introspect as to what old habit or sin is still a shadow that is following us. Is it too difficult to stop lying, stop complaining, stop gossiping, or coveting or some other habit/sin? We cannot pour new wine in old wineskin. We must be completely cleansed, purged of every trace of the world for our Lord to fill us with His goodness.

Unable to fully obey and fully trust in the Lord has deadly repercussions. God said He will punish those who are sailing in two boats. Lives and time were lost in the wilderness due to disobedience and lack of faith. Instead of enjoying the abundance of the Promised Land, the Israelites wandered in the desert for forty years. Even the righteous people had to suffer for the faithlessness of the people. Are we walking in the footsteps of these disobedient and faithless Israelites? Are our faithless actions causing us to miss out on God’s best? Are our actions robbing others around us of God’s blessings?

Dear Saint of God, it is time. Time to let go off the past. Time to give up our old habits/sins. Time to die to self. The Promised Land awaits us. The fullness of God’s goodness is at hand. We are missing out on it due to our own disobedience. We could be more alive than we are right now if only we learn to trust Him completely. We could stop wandering aimlessly if only we learn to focus on Christ and follow Him. We could come out of this wilderness we have created around ourselves and enter into the Promised Land.

Psalm 16: 5 – 6

The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You support my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; indeed my heritage is beautiful to me.

Wilderness Wanderings – Part 1

Featured ~ Sowmya Gali

Numbers 14: 22 – 24

“Surely all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to test these ten times and have not listened to My voice, shall by no means see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who spurned Me see it. But My servant Caleb, because he has had a different spirit and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land which he entered, and his descendants shall take possession of it.”

Israelites were eye witnesses to God’s awesome power while in Egypt, during the exodus from Egypt and while on their journey towards the Promised Land. They have seen how God destroyed the Egyptians, and their gods. They were eyewitnesses to the pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. They witnessed how the Lord of Hosts parted the Red Sea for them to cross. They feasted on Heavenly Manna, quail and water from the rock while in the desert. Despite witnessing and experiencing God’s protection, and provision, they still did not believe in God fully.

When Moses sent the twelve spies to scout the land they were going to possess, ten of the spies came back with a negative report. For forty days, they surveyed the land and all they could see was how miniscule they were like grasshoppers (Numbers 13: 33) before the people of Canaan. On the contrary, Caleb and Joshua, who were fully aware of God’s awesome power, believed that a God who could annihilate a massive Egyptian army is well able to dispossess these Canaanites from the land. Caleb and Joshua were certain in the power of the Almighty God. After their return, their positive report based on what they believed couldn’t prevail upon the negative report of the other ten spies who were afraid of what they saw.  

Because of their lack of faith in the Almighty God, the Israelites were doomed to wander in the desert for the next forty years, a year for each day they spent scouting the Promised Land. Until every single one of them died in the wilderness, God did not allow them to enter the Promised Land. Only Caleb, Joshua, and the younger generation, were able to enter the land, dispossess the Canaanites and claim the inheritance.

We have seen God’s awesome power, His protection, and His provision numerous times in our lives. Yet, we have not fully obeyed the Lord like Caleb and Joshua. We still doubt and shirk away from His promises. We are comfortable living in the past with our old self. No wonder we are unable to see the goodness of God in our lives. Our own unbelief is stopping us to witness the power of God in our lives. We have no right to say that God is far away or that God doesn’t listen to our pleas, when we have to introspect where we are lacking in our own faithfulness and obedience towards God.

2 Corinthians 5: 7

For we walk by faith and not by sight.

Precious Saint of God, instead of blaming God for all the evil or wrong that is happening to us, let us look within our own hearts and see where we have been disobedient to God’s commands. God has already blessed us. A Promised Land awaits us. All we need are eyes of faith and an obedient heart to enter the Promised Land, a land flowing with milk and honey, where our hungry souls will be satisfied. Let us strive to walk by faith in an Almighty God and in obedience to Him, who is well able to preserve us and lead us to the Promised Land. Let us not walk by sight in unbelief and disobedience, thereby, miss out on the blessings that are in store for us. May our good and faithful Lord preserve us as we walk in total belief in Him.