From our first part of Abundance, we learned that the people who were sent out to spy on the land came with reports. i.e. ten instilled fear and doubt in the Israelite community and two spoke faith in God and what God had promised them. One of the biggest obstacles that the ten saw in the land of Canaan was giants (man) which made them so afraid of receiving the gift (promise) God had given them, a land flowing with milk and honey. The funny thing was that it was what they kept telling themselves, thus making the entire community doubt God and His promise by telling themselves the same thing, “We cannot conquer this land because the giants (men) who leave here are way stronger than us” They forgot the God who brought plagues to Egyptians when God was bringing them out of Egypt. They also forgot how God did an impossible thing, something that had never been done before, creating a path in the Red Sea for them to cross.
Numbers 14 NKJV
10 And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to the Lord. 11 Then they said to Moses, “Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? 12 Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, ‘Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness.”
13 And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation[b] of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. 14 The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold[c] your peace.”
15 And the Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward. 16 But lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it. And the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.
21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea into dry land, and the waters were divided.
From the above scripture, we learn that God is in the details, He told Moses that they would cross on dry ground at the sea and it happened just as He said.
When the Israelites came to Canaan, the immediate fear of the giants returned them to the default state of the mindset of being weak, for that is what they knew all their lives, for 450 years.
God was displeased with them for they did not believe Him and His Word, even after what He had done for them. They did not trust God to protect them and believe that He would give Canaan to them by taking it from a strong people (giants)
Hebrews 11:6 Amplified Bible
But without faith, it is impossible to [walk with God and] please Him, for whoever comes [near] to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He rewards those who [earnestly and diligently] seek Him.
Many are the times we return back to slavery (our Egypt) for its what we have known for a long time, it seems safe, even if it’s hard. We say to ourselves, it is better for me to go through this than face that. eg.
- Ignore someone then forgive him/her
- Lie than tell the truth
- Keep my friend circle or worldly fun/pleasure then receive Jesus into my heart
- Seek what satisfies me than seeking God first
The list is endless, you know yours and what is keeping hold of you.
The good news is that what we are learning about in this series of Jireh about “Abundance” is that when God told Moses He was going to send the people back to the wilderness, He wanted all the Israelites to know their identity as the people of God among others things.
To the Israelites, the wilderness seemed like a place of death, and they constantly complained that God had brought them there to die. Has God brought you to a place where you feel helpless, weak, and like you will never make it out?
Jireh means the Lord will provide, a provision is needed when there is a need.
If you happen to be in such a season of the wilderness, know that God wants to mold you into someone who reflects His identity in the sphere of your influence.
Among the miracles God did for His people, was provide food and water for them, in a very different way than they were used to or thought possible. The way you acquire your provision may be shut, but that does not mean God’s provision is, for God’s word says His provision in the wilderness came to where they were. So no matter what you may be facing, be encouraged that God will locate you where you are and provide in ABUNDANCE
Photo by Liza Summer: https://www.pexels.com/photo/upset-diverse-women-near-wall-6383270/
