May the mumbling commence!
What does it take for us to learn? What does it take for us to trust the leading of the Lord? Doubt and fear have always been a part of the faith equation – at least when it comes to the human part of the quotient. Read from Deuteronomy chapter one:
"But I said to you, 'Don't be afraid! The Lord your God is going before you. He will fight for you, just as you saw him do in Egypt. And you saw how the Lord your God cared for you again and again here in the wilderness, just as a father cares for his child. Now he has brought you to this place.' But even after all he did, you refused to trust the Lord your God, who goes before you looking for the best places to camp, guiding you by a pillar of fire at night and a pillar of cloud by day.
When the Lord heard your complaining, he became very angry. So he solemnly swore, 'Not one of you from this entire wicked generation will live to see the good land I swore to give your ancestors, except Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see this land because he has followed the Lord completely. I will give to him and his descendants some of the land he walked over during his scouting mission.'
And the Lord was also angry with me because of you. He said to me, 'You will never enter the Promised Land! Instead, your assistant, Joshua son of Nun, will lead the people into the land. Encourage him as he prepares to enter it. I will give the land to your innocent children. You were afraid they would be captured, but they will be the ones who occupy it. As for you, turn around now and go on back through the wilderness toward the Red Sea. ‘(Verses 29-40)
There it is again. Don’t be afraid. It is one of the most often repeated thoughts is the Bible. Don’t be afraid.
Yet fear is something we struggle with thousands of years later. We have even more history with God – beyond the Exodus and the wilderness miracles. Sure – the Lord no longer goes before us in a pillar of cloud and fire. But, still, we have the miraculous work of Jesus to remember. We have the gift that has been given to us. We have the example of how to live a faithful life.
Yet still we fear. In Deuteronomy chapter two, the Lord points Israel to the faith that other people had in God. They were successful against odds that seemed to be stacked against them. Why would it be any different for us?
Holding ourselves back from the call of the Lord is always disastrous. Read from Luke chapter eleven:
"Anyone who isn't helping me opposes me, and anyone who isn't working with me is actually working against me.
When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, searching for rest. But when it finds none, it says, 'I will return to the person I came from.' So it returns and finds that its former home is all swept and clean. Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before." (Verses 23-26)
Sitting idly by is opposition. Sitting idly by is working against the Lord. Set fear aside. Don’t be afraid. Follow the call of the Lord despite the mountainous obstructions that seem to loom in that path. Welcome the Spirit of the living God into your life. God will provide. Our Lord always has. Why would this time be any different?
No, really – don’t be afraid.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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