There was a time in my early walk with the Lord that I was steadfast and focused on not grumbling. That was a time when I was acutely aware of how the Lord encourages us to be, act, think, do, live, and love.
The Lord’s parables were my marching orders and I tried my very best to become detached from my old ways of doing things and attached to His perspective and the gratefulness that marked my salvation.
But I have this against you. You have abandoned your first love. Therefore, keep in mind how far you have fallen. Repent and perform the deeds you did at first. But if you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.
Revelation 2:5
- The days when it was all about removing the plank in my own eye.
- The days when it was about loving others, and fasting and prayer and worship, and being set apart.
- The days when it was about being immersed in the word of God, and seeking His face.
- Hearing His voice and following it wholeheartedly.
- And keeping my voice from slandering God’s character and faithfulness.
Grumbling was and still is a sign of unbelief. I feel confidently I can say that with boldness. It’s a subtle distinction between grumbling and declaring the reality of a situation.
The thing that determines the difference is the position of the heart and mind. Are we declaring the truth of God as sovereign over the thing?
Christ was faithful as a Son over His house—whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.
Heb 3:6 NASB
It’s easy to think that when times are REALLY hard, grumbling is okay. But I believe it’s the opposite. If we look at the Israelites, they had a lot on the line.
They were coming out of slavery. They were literally being persecuted. They were in the wilderness, in transit, millions in number. Their leader was Moses, a man of God chosen to facilitate their deliverance.
Over 40+ years, the hebrews walked out this reality. Yet, in the midst of the trials Yahweh showed Himself mighty performing many signs and wonders and miracles.
Times were hard, and the people grumbled and complained. And this is the setting where our Yahweh called out their evil hearts of unbelief.
Grumble grumble grumble.
He even lead them to the cusp of the promise land, where they were able to see the fruit and goodness of the land. But they persisted in elevating their fears of the enemy over the truth of God’s faithfulness, declaring that they’d rather return to slavery than trust in Yahweh.
This is such a danger, the Apostle Paul shared this in the book of Hebrews:
Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end, while it is said,
“Today if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me.”For who provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses? And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient? So we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.
Heb 3:12-19 NASB
Caleb and (Joshua) were of a different spirit. That is the spirit I want to walk in. One that follows Him wholeheartedly and recognizes, there actually may be giants in the land but God swore to give us this land and He will fight on our behalf.
But because My servant Caleb has a different spirit and has followed Me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he has entered, and his descendants will inherit it.
Numbers 14:24
This is a day to reflect and determine to follow the Lord wholeheartedly. To repent and return to the things you did at first. When He was your first love.
Some questions to pray through…
- What promises has He made to you?
- Where has He been trying to lead you?
- What has kept you from moving forward?
- Have you been harboring an “evil heart of unbelief”? (If so, repent. Declare the truth of God’s power in your life.)
- Remember how God has moved mightily on your behalf in the past, just like He did for the Israelites.
- Then pray and make a plan to move forward.
It’s time to take the land.
Beloved, what has He put in your heart to do?
Share it and declare it in the comments below!
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