The people refused to enter the pleasant land, for they wouldn’t believe his promise to care for them.
Okay, this is beyond my ability to understand. They were standing on sand – in the desert – looking at Canaan. It was bad enough that they didn’t just believe and obey God, following where He led. Even worse, they could not accept the beauty and bounty of the place He had called them to and chose to stay in the desert instead.
The desert! They chose to stay in the barren, dry places where there was only enough food and water for their massive numbers because God took care of them! They chose a life of wandering with no home, trekking through the desert (where God had to take care of them) instead of trusting Him and moving on over into the lush bounty of Canaan – which He had already told them would be theirs. Why?
I think the bottom line is that we humans tend to prefer the challenges we know. The challenges Israel faced in the desert were so familiar, and God’s care through those challenges so consistent, that they were (and I use the word in a skewed fashion) comfortable. In truth, I think they took God’s care in the desert so for granted that they hardly recognized it anymore. Stepping over into Canaan, though, would have meant trusting God to care for them in new areas and…oh…
Until then, God had done everything for them, or had Moses or specific others do it. They knew, though, that in Canaan they would be called upon to do something – to take up arms and fight for the ground God had promised them. They were like baby Christians who don’t want to grow up! Or, I suppose, it is rather the other way around – today’s perpetually babyish Christians are very much like these children of God.
When someone first turns his life over to God, He takes total care of them as if they were literal babies – answering every prayer instantly (like a parent responding to a baby’s cry) and often in astoundingly miraculous ways, but then God requires them to grow up – to start using and exercising their faith – to DO something…to take up arms and fight for the ground He has promised them. The funny thing is that God usually ends up fighting the battles for us after we take up arms to fight (just as He did for Israel once they actually crossed on over into Canaan); He just wants us to get up off our blessed assurance and move. But too many refuse. They aren’t willing to take up arms and step forward into His promises, trusting Him to take care of them through everything. No, they would rather stay in babyhood where they don’t have to do anything (but also can’t own or be anything); they would rather stay in the desert.
I’ve seen myself in Israel before, but until meditating on this passage I had never really seen their walk as a parallel to my spiritual walk; yet it is. What they did as a nation I may (or may not) do as a Christian – gaining or losing ground accordingly. Help me, Lord, to keep moving forward!
Reading on into verses 34-39 you see the consequences of Israel’s refusal to grow up. They thought they would be just fine if they stayed in babyhood, in the desert, but because they first disobeyed God’s call to move forward and then, when they did move, moved on their own terms…
When we disobey God in any way we are in sin, and unconfessed sin always has consequences. In their case, it became greater sin. (v. 34-39) “Israel failed to destroy the nations in the land, as the lord had told them to. Instead, they mingled among the pagans and adopted their evil customs. They worshipped their idols, and this led to their downfall. They even sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons. They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters. By sacrificing them to the idols of Canaan, they polluted the land with murder. They defiled themselves by their evil deeds, and their love of idols was adultery in the lord’s sight.”
It’s true; there is no such thing as standing still with God. We must continually move forward. It is also true that genuine obedience is doing what God says, when God says, how God says and all God says. Israel did finally cross over into Canaan, but even then they failed to do all God said – destroy the nations of the land. They let some remain and, because they did, they “fell” into horrible sin and later paid an unimagined price for that sin. God has great mercy, but (v. 43) “Again and again he delivered them, but they continued to rebel against him, and they were finally destroyed by their sin.”
God was still merciful, and did deliver them in the end, but how different would it have been if they had obeyed Him, and fully, the first time? Where, for instance, would Israel be today? Where would I be today if I had always obeyed Him, and fully, the first time?
For those who wonder how I can possible serve a God I cannot see, this is how. Yes, when I accepted Jesus as my Savior, I did it in faith. I did it because what the minister said made sense, and I liked what I saw in the lives of those I knew served Him.
As I made Him Lord of my life, committing time to get to know Him, we began to build a genuine relationship. This relationship that you can’t see is why I continue to serve Him after all these years.
I explained once, to a friend, that I had never seen her father, had no proof of his existence beyond what she had told me of their relationship. Based on what I could not see, I had the option of choosing to believe he did not exist. I chose to believe he did, because I trusted my friend and believed what she told me about their relationship.
How can you have a relationship with someone you can’t touch and feel? People do it all the time over the Internet. For decades, we’ve been developing relationships with people we may or may not ever meet in person. Sometimes we even feel closer to those distant friends than we do to the ones in our “real lives.”
My relationship with God is like that. I am closer to Him than anyone around me. He’s inside me, knows me better than I know myself. Have I ever seen him? Well, I’ve actually had two visions of Jesus, so yes…but even if I had not it would make no difference, because seeing isn’t necessary to relationship. Feeling isn’t necessary to relationship. Only knowing is necessary to relationship and oh, yes, I do know Him.
We were in the back of our Girl Scout leader’s car, on our way to a campout, when I overheard a girl with short, curly hair telling the story of the day years before when she had gotten her incredibly long hair cut off. As I heard the details, I popped up and interrupted her to ask if she remembered two girls watching. She did, and I informed her that I was one of those girls. RAM – Randomly, I instantly accessed a memory I’d totally forgotten. (And, just as randomly, it was the “Hare Today” title of a previous post that triggered this memory as well as inspiring today’s title.)
Mother was a hair stylist (We called them beauticians in those days.) until I was in Junior High and my parents started a business. As a result of her profession, Clarissa and I spent many hours in various salons. The day the girl came in with the longest hair I’d ever seen on a child (she could sit on it) and cut it SHORT really had burned itself into my hard drive. I may not access the information often, but it’s there.
I remember being appalled. I remember being astounded that she was so happy with her new ‘do.’ I remember being convinced that she would regret it forever.
How often, in life, are we able to get answers to our impossible questions? I mean, really? When I realized who she was, I had to know. Had she regretted it? Ever?
“Never!” she said with a smile.
No, it wasn’t one of the great questions of the universe, but it was satisfying to finally have it answered nonetheless. I love it when things like that happen!
They were the youngest daughters of one my Mother’s friends. It amazes me, actually, that I remember them at all, because the time during which our moms would have been friends had to have been fairly short.
Nonetheless, assuming the few memories I have are accurate and not my childhood brain combining multiple stories, I can tell you they were Catholic, because they were studying them one day and they said their mom only allowed Catholic Bibles in the house; there was a baby in the picture somewhere, because their home was the first in which I saw how much babies liked to play with keys (real ones, not those plastic toys); and their older siblings were…a little creative.
On the night I’m remembering, our moms went out somewhere and Clarissa (my sister) and I, along with Venitta and Vanessa, were left in the care of their older siblings – one of which obviously had a car. I remember watching a what-to-do discussion as our babysitters tried to decide how to have fun while keeping the kids. They settled on going to the movies.
Normal. Right?
Unless you’re going to a drive-in theater with limited funds, want to see movies little kids can’t see legally, and those kids really are little…little enough to fit in the trunk.
Yep, that was my first experience with truly breaking the rules. It was, bless God, my only experience inside a car’s trunk. Well, except that it happened more than once that night. As I recall, the first movie didn’t serve, so we went to another…and perhaps a third?
Another first that night was “rated” movies. I saw things at one of them that… Well, I think they figured out they’d blown it at that one, because we didn’t stay long after the scene that messed with my young head.
It never ceases to amaze me, this random access we have to memories from decades ago. It’s also intriguing to consider: How accurate ARE my memories of my two young friends? Assuming Venitta and Vanessa are out there, do they remember us? Do they remember that night? Are they as dedicated to their Bibles today as they seemed to be then?
I’ve been in a few conversations, lately, regarding introverts and extroverts. For those who don’t know the difference, the most basic explanation has to do with how you recharge your batteries. If being in crowds wears on you and drawing away for some alone time builds you back up, you’re an introvert. You’re like me.
I’ve learned how to live in an extroverted world, of course…so much so that many don’t even know this detail about Tammy. The fact remains, however, that too much time spent in large groups of people will eventually find me hiding out for a few minutes in a bathroom stall with my eyes closed, gathering myself so that I can get back out among them.
None of which really has anything to do with why I even picked up my phone to blog today. I was actually thinking, this afternoon, about the seeming contradictions where introverts are concerned. For instance, while you might expect those who enjoy speaking in public (Yes, at one time I did a few times every year) to be extroverts, I’ve found that many of my favorite speakers are actually introverts.
And then there are things like the school play. I don’t know if this is really an introvert thing, but I think so.
I always wanted to be involved in drama in school, but didn’t have the nerve. When they were putting on one of my favorite plays one year, I REALLY wanted to try out, but signed up for tech instead–even that was huge for me.
Fortunately for me, I had friends who knew me well enough that they tricked me into trying out even though I wasn’t officially supposed to. I clearly remember, while I was singing, the director asking, “Who is that?”
I didn’t get a part that day, but when one of those friends had to drop out a couple of weeks later I was offered her spot (I even eventually got a three-word solo. LOL!).
My point is this. Sometimes we introverts really do want to take part in what you extroverts are doing, desperately want to take part. At those times, if you know us well enough to recognize our need, we actually (eventually) appreciate it when you push/force/trick us into following our rapidly palpitating hearts. At least…I did. I had a great time that year and have never forgotten what a treat it was to be tricked by those friends.
It’s amazing how an incident in your past can affect your present. When I was a child, we ran around barefoot all the time. We also lived on the water and enjoyed going down to the water’s edge to fish. One day, a broken bottle made its way to the bank’s surface and sliced through the big toe you can’t quite see here. I’ve dealt with the consequences of that day ever since.
The scar tissue that builds up is terrible. It’s not so bad during the winter when I wear a lot of low-healed boots that have plenty of toe room, but the minute spring hits, with its pretty heels, so does the pain. I used to just live with it, but the older I get the less willing I am to do that, so pedicures are now my friend.
There’s nothing wrong with running around barefoot, though I seldom do it anymore, but every trip to the nail salon is a reminder that every decision we make, even those that are seemingly inconsequential, has the potential to affect us (and others) for a very long time.
1Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with scoffers.
“Oh the joys…” These words (or, in KJV, “blessed”) make one want to continue reading. Who wouldn’t want to know about something that would bring them joy? Who is this joyful one?
First, he is one who does not follow the advice of the wicked. At a quick glance, it is easy to say that of course we wouldn’t do such a thing, but can we be so sure? In my day-to-day life, whose advice do I take, really? I remember a friend telling me once that she and her husband had been working with a credit counselor who had advised (commanded, actually) them to stop paying tithes and giving offerings until they were out of debt. Now, I understand that it may have been their own actions that got them into debt in the first place, but tithing certainly wasn’t one of these destructive actions. Indeed, in taking advice that ran counter to God’s Word, they limited His freedom to bless them financially. I don’t remember ever hearing about things getting better after this. I’m sure it never occurred to them that they were following the advice of the wicked; they just wanted to get out of debt and failed to realize that they were actually going into debt with God while working on paying off man.
And do we stand around with sinners? Yes, we are in this world even if we are not of it. Too, spreading the Gospel is our responsibility and for others to receive from us usually requires at least some level of relationship. This does not mean, however, that it is appropriate for us to have sinners as our bosom buddies, those with whom we are closest and who influence us. It has been said that you can’t fly with the eagles if you hang with the turkeys. The Bible states it slightly differently. “Whoever walks with the wise will become wise; whoever walks with fools will suffer harm.” (Prov 13:20) While I may have sinners as friends, they should not be my primary companions. No one should be able to say of me, “She is the companion of fools.” Sinners, in God’s eyes, would certainly fall into the category of fools.
Join with the scoffers? Me? I don’t make a practice of it, certainly, but can I honestly say I have never done this? One who practices the “art of scoffing” is quite good at what he does. In belittling a person, project, or idea, he can make those who disagree with him feel foolish, small, and lacking in judgment. This type usually finds it easy to persuade at least a few to join with them. Indeed, it is possible that the only one more able in his “art” is the one who gossips, which is another act that God abhors.
2But they delight in doing everything the LORD wants; day and night they think about his law.
The King James version reads, “But his delight [is] in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” I like both versions. The New Living Translation makes it clear why this man’s delight is in the Law of the Lord. It’s not that he loves The Law for The Law’s sake, but because it is The Law that tells us what the Lord wants us to do. This man delights in The Law because in doing what it tells him to do he is pleasing his Lord.
What is meditating on The Word, on The Law? It is thinking about it, really thinking about it. It is paying close attention to what it says, what it means, and how I can apply it to my life. The one who delights in God’s Word chews on it like a steak lover chews on a prime piece of sirloin cooked to perfection; he takes his time and savors every bite, every word, wringing from the experience the greatest possible satisfaction. And the one who does this does it continually.
I kid you not; it is not unusual for me to wake up in the middle of the night thinking about specific Scriptures. I have not always done this of course; it is a habit that developed over time. First, I simply made a point of slowing down, of looking deeply at individual verses during my prayer time. Before long, however, I discovered that these verses would hang around in the back of my mind all day, asking questions about themselves and demanding answers. Now they hang quite close, ready to race to the forefront whenever I have a few moments to sit and think about them. Indeed, it’s astounding how much work goes on “on the back burner.” You hardly realize you’ve been thinking about something, meditating on it even on a subconscious level, until you are abruptly hit in the face with what feels like brand new revelation.
This is delight in itself. Even beyond the delight of knowing this much more about how to please your Lord is the joy of feeling like the Holy Spirit has just whispered a new revelation in your ear. Yes, the Bible makes it clear that there really isn’t anything new under the sun, but this revelation feels new, like a special gift from God to you. There are times when this revelation will seem too radical to be right. In such times I always check it against Scripture and I usually don’t share it with many people; I simply write it down. In almost all cases, my pastor or some other minister eventually shares the same revelation, which is a tremendous confirmation of my ability to hear from God.
3They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season without fail.
And here are the promises. I love how God not only tells us what we need to do to be pleasing to Him, but promises wonderful gifts to those who strive to do those things.
He says we will be like trees planed along the riverbank. I live in an area with many rivers and know well that it is the trees planted on the riverbank that are healthiest. Hardly ever suffering drought, they grow tall and strong. All things being equal, they produce fruit in season without fail and the fruit is excellent. Oh, let this always be me! It is my desire to continually produce the fruit of the Spirit as well as the other fruit that brings glory to God and expands His kingdom. This being my desire, I must certainly go back and pay special attention to verses one and two.
Their leaves never wither,
God marked this section with a spiritual highlighter years ago, bringing these specific words to my attention one evening during prayer. He had been speaking to me loudly about age, and about how it should and should not affect me, pointing out certain passages and saying, “This has to do with age, Tammy.” He said these words again when we reached this verse. “Their leaves never wither.” Again, as is true so much of the time, I’d spent years of my life reading the words without paying real attention to what they were saying. (Of course, until I turned forty I had little reason to care in this case.) The leaves withering on a tree is one of the things that mark the passing of time, an effect of age and environment. If a tree’s leaves don’t wither, we lose one of the signs of the changing of the seasons. Those who love a beautiful autumn display might be distressed by such an occurrence, but anyone transitioning into what is commonly referred to as the autumn of her life would greatly appreciate entering this time without showing any physical signs of age and the effects of environmental conditions.
The more God shows me on this topic, the more convinced I become that His perfect plan for us is that our bodies and minds continue to function perfectly until the day we give up this life for the next. I know it’s possible, because many have walked out the evidence, living this life fully until its end. The challenge is in overcoming the reality that surrounds us, the expectation that says, “Now, you know this is what happens as you get older.” I contend, however, that God’s truth is higher than reality and Psalm 91:4 says that His truth is my shield and buckler. His truth has the power to defend me from reality as long as I do what I must do – be fully persuaded of this truth, and be a good steward of the body and mind He has given me. Am I there yet? Not even, especially where being a good steward of my body is concerned, but I am working on it.
and in all they do, they prosper.
Here we have seven words that would, should, make anyone sit up and take notice. After all, who doesn’t want prosperity? I know there are those who have concerns about “the prosperity message,” but a careful study of Scripture shows that prosperity is God’s desire for us. How, then, could we excuse denying Him the right to give it?
Mention the word “prosper” and most seem to think of money, but according to this verse we are to prosper in all we do. Yes, we are to prosper in our businesses, but we should also prosper physically and mentally as I mentioned in my notes on the last phrase. Too, we should prosper in parenting, relationships, ministry…in every thing we do. Since God has said that if I do all he talks about in verses one and two then this prosperity will happen, I cannot help but conclude that it is my fault if I am walking out those two verses and still not prospering in all I do. I must be doing something to put a wall up between me and the prosperity God wants for me. What is that wall made of? Unbelief is the most obvious thing, and I can think of a few other possibilities as well. It is my mission to seek and destroy those things so that I may walk in the fullness of what God has made available to me.
4But this is not true of the wicked. They are like worthless chaff, scattered by the wind. 5They will be condemned at the time of judgment. Sinners will have no place among the godly. 6For the LORD watches over the path of the godly, but the path of the wicked leads to destruction.
I seldom include verses such as these in my written mediations, because my intent is to concentrate on what I need to do and ensure that these verses can never apply to me. It is sad to think of these verses when they apply to specific people I know. Put in a name where it mentions the wicked, see what happens to the wicked and all that they lose, and you are more motivated to reach out to that person, to help them find the light. I don’t want anyone to be worthless chaff, scattered on the wind. I want no one condemned. I want everyone to have God watching over their paths.
Yes, we in Christian culture know it as Good Friday, and it is a VERY Good Friday. A few years back, however, I grew hungry for more knowledge of the Jewish Jesus. I had a desire to understand where Jesus and His disciples were coming from, so I began researching more about what it meant to be a Jew. As I learned, Good Friday became even more awesome than before.
Passover isn’t just a celebration of God delivering the children of Israel out of Egypt. It is so much more, and what happens during this feast lies not only at the roots of Jewish culture but that of Christianity as well. The Jews flocked to Jerusalem with their required sacrifices, those spotless lambs they had been keeping carefully for this, The Lord’s Feast. This was no mere offering up of the life of a perfect lamb to them; it was spiritual life and death. Only if they brought an acceptable sacrifice would their sins be covered for the following year – and only for the year.
Think on that a moment. They put forth a massive amount of effort to fulfill their responsibility in this. Whether they counted it labor or honor, it was WORK to preserve a spotless lamb and bring it to the Temple, to wait their turn to actually make their offering in the midst of a chaotic symphony of bleating and talking and prayers and…and the shedding of so much blood. They did all of this trusting God to cover their sins for a single year, planning to return the following year to do the same.
There is much more to Passover, but this is the point to which I wished to bring us. On THAT Passover, THE Perfect Lamb offered Himself up instead. From that moment on, these annual sacrifices became unnecessary because His blood didn’t simply cover our sins for a single year; rather, it washed them away forever.
On Monday evening, when I was finally recovering from a truly SICK weekend, my rest was interrupted by a girl’s screams and the sound of two dogs fighting. It is amazing what a good shot of adrenaline can do. I was out the back door, over the fence that was lying on the ground, and in the midst of a dog fight in seconds – and one of the dogs was mine.
We have yet to figure out what happened, exactly. The girl was walking her dog (Great Dane), who had never shown any sign of aggression that I know of, when said dog dashed across the yard, dragging her the whole way, and literally took down our fence. (T-post, so not QUITE what you’re thinking, though still!) As I said, no one knows exactly what happened, but when I ran outside I found my passive whippet/beagle mix locked in mortal combat with a horse-sized demon.
And here’s where this post takes a turn you’re probably not expecting.
I was actually able to separate the dogs, with one collar in each hand, and knelt there on the ground between two seemingly calm pooches while the girl went for her aunt. It was over.
Or so it seemed. When I told the whole story to my sister she said, “You know YOU weren’t the one holding those dogs!” Had the event ended right there, I might have disagreed with her, but the instant the aunt took the other dog, and I removed my hand from her collar, she was on my Daisy again as if the battle had never stopped. Needless to say, I let go of Daisy instantly so she could do her best to fight back while the other woman tried to get control of the Great Dane.
We did get control. Daisy did go to the vet and get care for four gaping wounds. (Yes, the dog owner paid and even provided transport for Jack and Daisy since I wasn’t able to take her myself.) Daisy is recovering well and everything is going to be fine.
The more I think, though, about how calmly I knelt on the ground between those two dogs, and how totally at peace they appeared to be while I was there, the more I am blown away. Frankly, though I’m pretty sure I would do it again, it was a pretty stupid move on my part.
You can’t tell me God wasn’t protecting me. You just can’t.
Visit my Pintrest board and you’ll find a collection of pathways. I don’t even know how many I’ve pinned. I know only that I could easily pin hundreds more if I had time to sit and peruse the options.
Paths have always fascinated me. I look at a picture of a pathway that wanders off into the distance and the fairy tale loving part of me wonders, “What’s beyond that curve? What would I reach if I could follow it to the end?” I have this absurd sense that I, like Alice, could step through the frame and see.
It’s not just any paths I love, though. I appreciate well-manicured paths and paths that have been laid with stones or even railroad ties, but the ones I love best are truly natural paths, paths that speak of hundreds of footsteps (or hoof steps!) wearing down the grass over a period of time, paths that indicate something worth pursing, something that inexorably draws one forward to…
To what?
To the future, in a sense. To the unknown country that lies before us. I’ve never been one to settle for the here and now alone. No…I dream of what’s to come. I always have. Not that I let those dreams interfere with today, of course – usually – but rather that they drive me today in hopes of being ready to experience the best of tomorrow…and next week…and…
So, now that I think about it, I AM on one of those paths, and the photos I so delightedly collect also represent the various faces of the path I’m on. Interesting, how your thoughts can ramble in unexpected directions and you can see one thing in yourself while speaking of others.
What was it Bilbo said? “It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
May your eyes be opened to your path, and may you be swept off your feet today.
