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| Where are your steps leading you? |
Think about where you put your foot. About
where you step. Lately with all the icy sidewalks and streets it has been risky
to even venture out of our nice, cozy, warm house. But as we did we were very
cautious and chose the route to our car very carefully. Those Israelites were
about to step into the Jordan River—flowing at flood stage. Would you be eager
to step into a raging river? Didn’t they remember the parting of the Red Sea? Go
back to the story… among all those who originally left Egypt only Joshua and Caleb
were allowed to go into the Promised Land.
Then the LORD said, "I will pardon them
as you have requested. But as surely as I live, and as surely as the earth is
filled with the LORD's glory, not one of these people will ever enter that
land. They have all seen my glorious presence and the miraculous signs I
performed both in Egypt and in the wilderness, but again and again they have
tested me by refusing to listen to my voice. They will never even see the land
I swore to give their ancestors. None of those who have treated me with
contempt will ever see it. But my servant Caleb has a different attitude than
the others have. He has remained loyal to me, so I will bring him into the land
he explored. His descendants will possess their full share of that land. Now
turn around, and don't go on toward the land where the Amalekites and
Canaanites live. Tomorrow you must set out for the wilderness in the direction
of the Red Sea." Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "How long
must I put up with this wicked community and its complaints about me? Yes, I
have heard the complaints the Israelites are making against me. Now tell them
this: 'As surely as I live, declares the LORD, I will do to you the very things
I heard you say. You will all drop dead in this wilderness! Because you
complained against me, every one of you who is twenty years old or older and
was included in the registration will die. You will not enter and occupy the
land I swore to give you. The only exceptions will be Caleb son of Jephunneh
and Joshua son of Nun." Numbers
14:20-30
Obedience and loyalty to the Lord God is
essential to stepping foot into the Promised Land. Moses got to see the
Promised Land—but never to enter it. Without Moses asking God to pardon the
Israelites they all would have perished in the desert.
"Please, Lord, prove that your power is
as great as you have claimed. For you said, 'The LORD is slow to anger and
filled with unfailing love, forgiving every kind of sin and rebellion. But He
does not excuse the guilty. He lays the sins of the parents upon their
children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth
generations.' In keeping with your magnificent, unfailing love, please pardon
the sins of this people, just as you have forgiven them ever since they left
Egypt." Numbers 14:17-19
Where are your steps leading you? Is your attitude like Caleb's towards the Lord?
Prayer
~ Lord God, we recognize that You have not changed—You are still powerful above
all. You see our mistakes…our sins...and don’t excuse the guilty. So have mercy
on each of us, on our family and friends, too, that we would not only recognize
Your power, but willingly submit out lives to You and live to please you.
Wherever we step may that be where You want us to walk—to honor and serve You.
May we be strong and courageous.
Daily
Bible Reading: February 15 – Leviticus 8-10
©
2017 by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. All scripture quoted from the
New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible
- http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm. www.blueletterbible.org/dailyreading
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