The Upper Room Daily Devotional from The United Methodist Church of Nashville, Tennessee, United States for Tuesday, 21 November 2017 "Key to Courage" by Karen Foster (California) - Numbers 13:26-33
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DAILY DEVOTIONAL FOR TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2017
The spies said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” (Numbers 13:31 (NIV))
My heart raced. I couldn’t sleep. Lord, I can’t do this. Although I’d spent weeks preparing to speak at a women’s conference, my confidence vanished the night before the event. What if I mess up? What if they don’t like me? I had to remind myself that God had called me to do the very thing I now feared. I prayed for courage and faith to believe that God would be there — come what may.
Fear is powerful. God told Moses to send men to examine the promised land of Canaan. When the spies returned, they affirmed that the land flowed with milk and honey. But they compared themselves to the strong people who lived there and said, “We can’t attack them.”
Why did God tell Moses to explore the land? Perhaps it was so they would believe God was present and able to fulfill the promise regardless of what they’d seen. Only then could they overcome their enemies. But the Israelites refused to believe God.
Where does our faith rest when we’re fearful? Either we trust that God will help us, or we focus on our inadequacies. The key to courage is remembering all that God has done in our lives so that we can step out in faith.
My heart raced. I couldn’t sleep. Lord, I can’t do this. Although I’d spent weeks preparing to speak at a women’s conference, my confidence vanished the night before the event. What if I mess up? What if they don’t like me? I had to remind myself that God had called me to do the very thing I now feared. I prayed for courage and faith to believe that God would be there — come what may.
Fear is powerful. God told Moses to send men to examine the promised land of Canaan. When the spies returned, they affirmed that the land flowed with milk and honey. But they compared themselves to the strong people who lived there and said, “We can’t attack them.”
Why did God tell Moses to explore the land? Perhaps it was so they would believe God was present and able to fulfill the promise regardless of what they’d seen. Only then could they overcome their enemies. But the Israelites refused to believe God.
Where does our faith rest when we’re fearful? Either we trust that God will help us, or we focus on our inadequacies. The key to courage is remembering all that God has done in our lives so that we can step out in faith.
TODAY'S PRAYER:
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Numbers 13:26 and went to Moshe, Aharon and the entire community of the people of Isra’el at Kadesh in the Pa’ran Desert, where they brought back word to them and to the entire community and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 What they told him was this: “We entered the land where you sent us, and indeed it does flow with milk and honey — here is its fruit! 28 However the people living in the land are fierce, and the cities are fortified and very large. Moreover, we saw the ‘Anakim there. 29 ‘Amalek lives in the area of the Negev; the Hitti, the Y’vusi and the Emori live in the hills; and the Kena‘ani live by the sea and alongside the Yarden.”
30 Kalev silenced the people around Moshe and said, “We ought to go up immediately and take possession of it; there is no question that we can conquer it.” 31 But the men who had gone with him said, “We can’t attack those people, because they are stronger than we are”; 32 and they spread a negative report about the land they had reconnoitered for the people of Isra’el by saying, “The land we passed through in order to spy it out is a land that devours its inhabitants. All the people we saw there were giant! 33 We saw the N’filim, the descendants of ‘Anak, who was from the N’filim; to ourselves we looked like grasshoppers by comparison, and we looked that way to them too!”
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Rather than giving in to fear,I will trust God and pray for courage.
Someone afraid of public speaking
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There Are Mountains BY KAREN FOSTER (CALIFORNIA)
“I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth." (Psalm 121:1-2, NIV).
A view from the Citabria taildragger airplaneThere are mountains where I live. Normally, I find them lovely unless I’m flying over them in my husband’s small airplane. Instead of embracing the spectacular birds-eye view and trusting my husband who’s flying, I squeeze my eyes shut. Cowering beneath my jacket, I hold my breath waiting till we get to the other side. Even now, when my husband suggests flying me somewhere, I ask him, “Are there mountains?”
Living on the West coast of the United States, it’s hard to avoid them. Mountains are everywhere! I prefer flying over the Sacramento Valley where the flat land is lined with rice fields and almond orchards. Cattle graze on a carpet of green grass, and Interstate 5 stretches for miles like a grey ribbon. I have a sense of safety knowing we could coast the plane down and land without too many bumps. Yes, given a choice, I’d rather fly over—and live—in the peaceful valley.
Do I treat life this way? You know, there are mountains out there too. Sweet moments in life might be considered a mountain-top experience like the breath-taking beauty that comes after an uphill hike when we’re standing on the top of the world. But, there are also treacherous mountains where the trees don’t grow and the steep elevation seems insurmountable. Only, we have no choice but to go up and over. Not knowing if we’ll survive our circumstances. How do we react when the mountainous problem looming before us is 5,000 feet or a 14,000-foot peak? Do we cower and hide our heads in denial like an ostrich’s head in a hole? Pull back into our shells like a frightened turtle?
Fear—and a lack of trust—is my first response whether I’m flying in mountains or facing “life.” I’m beginning to think I’ll never change. It’s how I’m wired. However, I did something on my last flight that opened my eyes. As we took off towards the hills, I’d closed my eyes. Only this time, I listened to Christian music on my iPod. And I meditated on the Biblical truths behind the lyrics.
- Jesus loves me.
- God’s grace is sufficient.
- God won’t forsake me.
- God is sovereign.
- I can trust God regardless of my terrain.
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Header Photo Credit: "Harvested Land," Beth Shumate. August 15, 2014. (link)
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