Stuck in fear
Have you ever attempted to do something you were completely unqualified for? Trust me, I've been there and done that! Just ask my husband...as the "Pinterest mom", I like to find new projects or crafts to try with the kids. Sometimes they turn out, but most often they are a fail! A huge, embarrassing fail that just reminds me I'm not as crafty as I thought I was.
I finally made it into the book of Deuteronomy and Moses is leading the Israelites across the Jordan and into Canaan...finally the promised land. In these first few chapters, Moses is kind of recapping the past events and failures of the Israelite people. I find it almost humorous that he is repeating their failures over and over. There comes a point in the story where God tells the people to go up and fight the people over the valley of Eschol. It was a good land bearing good fruit, however they needed to overcome the intimidating people there. They were scared..."Our brothers have made us lose heart by saying the people are bigger and taller than we are..." Deuteronomy 1:28. Moses tried to comfort them by exclaiming "Do not be afraid for the Lord your God goes before you and will fight for you, The Lord your God carries you as a father carries his child out of Egypt." This is a beautiful passage full of encouragement. As I read this, I picture myself carrying my young son around his room for an entire afternoon one day as he was scared to go to sleep. It was no easy feat as he is quite heavy, but eventually he laid his little tear-streamed face on my shoulder. The kind of love a parent has for their child is demonstrated here by the kind of love God has for his people. Powerful.
But the people rebelled. Surprise surprise. With an eye roll and foot stomping, they refused to put their trust in God. The Lord became angry with them and threatened to take away the good land that He had promised. "Then the people replied, We have sinned against the Lord, we will go up and fight..." Oops, my bad! Only after they had thrown their little tantrum did they realize maybe they should've listened to God in the first place. The Lord replied "Do not go up and fight because I will not be with you." But they did anyways. And they lost...big time. Epic fail.
It reminds me of the time I took my kids to Mcdonald's ever popular play land. My three year old daughter, who is small but independent, decided she wanted to try to climb up the curvy wall. As the mom, I insisted that she is too small and needed someone's help but she had to be defiant and try it anyways. And guess who had to crawl up there to rescue her? Maybe if she would've listened and trusted in the first place...We were saying our prayers that night and she exclaimed "Thank you for getting stuck!" But it's an imagery of how God rescues us when we get stuck sometimes...
Is God calling you to do something that scares you? I felt a conviction in my heart to start writing down my thoughts. But I struggled with fear and insecurity. "The people are bigger and taller than we are..." could be translated into "The people are smarter and more knowledgeable about the bible than I am...". Maybe your thoughts are something along the lines of "how can I make a difference, I'm too (insert phrase here)." Fear is powerful. Insecurity is powerful. But guess what...God is powerful. When He calls you to do something, listen to Him. Like a parent teaches their child, God knows what He is doing. So are you stuck? Do you need rescuing? I know I need it more than I'm willing to admit. Like my three year old, I get myself stuck quite often. Stuck in my doubts and insecurities. But when we completely put our trust and reliance on Him, it takes us away from the heavy burden of self dependance and negative thinking. He goes before us and will fight for us. He will rescue us from the places we get stuck even if He told us not to attempt it in the first place. And He will carry you on His shoulder. So put aside your stubbornness and rest your heart in the One who created it. Listen to Him and trust that His ways are best.
I finally made it into the book of Deuteronomy and Moses is leading the Israelites across the Jordan and into Canaan...finally the promised land. In these first few chapters, Moses is kind of recapping the past events and failures of the Israelite people. I find it almost humorous that he is repeating their failures over and over. There comes a point in the story where God tells the people to go up and fight the people over the valley of Eschol. It was a good land bearing good fruit, however they needed to overcome the intimidating people there. They were scared..."Our brothers have made us lose heart by saying the people are bigger and taller than we are..." Deuteronomy 1:28. Moses tried to comfort them by exclaiming "Do not be afraid for the Lord your God goes before you and will fight for you, The Lord your God carries you as a father carries his child out of Egypt." This is a beautiful passage full of encouragement. As I read this, I picture myself carrying my young son around his room for an entire afternoon one day as he was scared to go to sleep. It was no easy feat as he is quite heavy, but eventually he laid his little tear-streamed face on my shoulder. The kind of love a parent has for their child is demonstrated here by the kind of love God has for his people. Powerful.
But the people rebelled. Surprise surprise. With an eye roll and foot stomping, they refused to put their trust in God. The Lord became angry with them and threatened to take away the good land that He had promised. "Then the people replied, We have sinned against the Lord, we will go up and fight..." Oops, my bad! Only after they had thrown their little tantrum did they realize maybe they should've listened to God in the first place. The Lord replied "Do not go up and fight because I will not be with you." But they did anyways. And they lost...big time. Epic fail.
It reminds me of the time I took my kids to Mcdonald's ever popular play land. My three year old daughter, who is small but independent, decided she wanted to try to climb up the curvy wall. As the mom, I insisted that she is too small and needed someone's help but she had to be defiant and try it anyways. And guess who had to crawl up there to rescue her? Maybe if she would've listened and trusted in the first place...We were saying our prayers that night and she exclaimed "Thank you for getting stuck!" But it's an imagery of how God rescues us when we get stuck sometimes...
Is God calling you to do something that scares you? I felt a conviction in my heart to start writing down my thoughts. But I struggled with fear and insecurity. "The people are bigger and taller than we are..." could be translated into "The people are smarter and more knowledgeable about the bible than I am...". Maybe your thoughts are something along the lines of "how can I make a difference, I'm too (insert phrase here)." Fear is powerful. Insecurity is powerful. But guess what...God is powerful. When He calls you to do something, listen to Him. Like a parent teaches their child, God knows what He is doing. So are you stuck? Do you need rescuing? I know I need it more than I'm willing to admit. Like my three year old, I get myself stuck quite often. Stuck in my doubts and insecurities. But when we completely put our trust and reliance on Him, it takes us away from the heavy burden of self dependance and negative thinking. He goes before us and will fight for us. He will rescue us from the places we get stuck even if He told us not to attempt it in the first place. And He will carry you on His shoulder. So put aside your stubbornness and rest your heart in the One who created it. Listen to Him and trust that His ways are best.
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