I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you. Job 42:2 (NLT)
The Israelites were told to go explore the land of Canaan (Numbers 13). This is the land that God had repeatedly promised to give them after they left Egypt. Moses picked twelve men to go on the expedition. When they returned, ten of them were against going in and two were for it. The ten men that were against moving forward were afraid. They saw things unfamiliar to them. They saw obstacles that were bigger than their courage could handle so they decided that this would be a failure.
They described the new land as bountiful; flowing with milk and honey. And then they did what we do. They said “But.” But, the people living there are powerful. They have lots of weapons and fortresses. They are all over the place! They were huge. We are nothing compared to them. We cannot do this. It’s too big for us.
They forgot some important “Buts.”
But, you are God’s people.
But, God will go before you.
But, there is nothing stronger than your God.
But, if this is God’s plan for you nothing can stop it.
The Israelites were so focused on what they saw instead of who they knew that it stopped them from stepping into God’s plan for them.
Do you do this? How often do we look at the path ahead and decide it is too hard for us? Our courage evaporates because we can’t see past our fears. Probably more often than we’d admit. We should never confuse what we can do on our own with what God can do for us. When we do, we miss out on our promised land.