My daily Bible reading this morning was in 1 Corinthians the tenth chapter. You would do well to slowly read through it some time in relation to what I have been talking about. You could find out a lot of answers to the questions, "Are we there, yet" and "Why did we go this way?"
When they came out of Egypt, God said, move when the cloud moves and stay when the cloud stays. The cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night was God's way of leading His people from point A to point B. We know that they wandered for 40 years. A one year's journey took 40. Why? All two million plus of them doubted God could or would do it, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb. Can you guess which of those two million people were the ONLY ones who got there? Caleb and Joshua. The rest of them died in that God-forsaken wilderness.
One of the things I have said in my previous blogs is that we need to set before us what God sets before us. Only two out of the two million did that. The rest of them doubted, slandered God and His leaders, rebelled against God's leadership, walked headlong into sin and wished that they were back in Egypt. God graciously provided all of them with the cloud by day for shelter from the sun and the fire by night to warm them in the cold desert nights. God graciously gave them all more than enough manna and quail to eat. Yet, two million failed to make it to the promised land that God had already prepared for them.
Think about it for a minute and recalibrate your faith, your hope and your joy as you ring in this new year. The promised land had been prepared already for them. God had been working on it for the four hundred years they were in bondage. For thirty-nine years, they could have been satisfied with the goodness of the most fertile land available. They could have been living in big houses inside of big cities. Their children could have had lots of room to play. But they didn't. Not because God was not God. It was because of their own doubts.
Caleb and Joshua set their hearts, souls and minds on God's promise. The others had their hearts set on doubts, complaining and how they could sin. Caleb and Joshua kept day-dreaming about the living in the land of more than enough. The others kept looking around them at their circumstances and found new reasons to complain, rebel and sin.
What are you going to do this new year? Are you going to be like the ones who missed it when they could have been enjoying it? What have you set your heart on? If you are one of those who make new year's resolutions? Then be resolute about God's promises. Set your heart, your soul and your mind on what He had promised you. Remember, His heart, mind and soul is already made up. He told us so in His Word.
May 2012 be filled with all the goodness of the Lord in all of our lives. My prayer is that revival spread like wildfire and that souls come flooding into the arms of the Lord.
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