Mindset

“But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.”- Romans 8:37

A mindset influences how we think, feel, and behave in any given situation. When the team of twelve spies returned from the promised land after forty days, they had two different opinions. Team one, (“the terrified ten”), reported that the people they encountered were stronger than them and would devour anyone who goes there. They reported that the giants made them feel like grasshoppers! This team treated the Lord with disrespect by ignoring his Word and not believing the promises he had made to them from the very beginning. Does the enemy ever try to entice you to join this kind of team!

But team two, the (“trusting two”) Caleb and Joshua, interrupted them as they reported and said “Let’s go at once to take the land. We can certainly conquer it.” But, the terrified ten disagreed and said, “We can’t go against them”. Their mind was already set. Well, do you see that this team was so close yet so far?  As a result of their faithlessness, God’s judgement on them was that they would not enter the “Promised Land”. Their destiny was decided right there and then, the wilderness!

The reason for this mission was to discover the natural resources of the land, the people, and to bring back samples of the crops. This journey was during the harvest season of the first ripe grapes. The terrified ten spies made the Almighty God’s majesty mundane and too familiar. Does this sound familiar, especially when we doubt God. He has given us so many great promises in his Word but it is possible to agree with what everyone else sees when we are not focused. Psalm 12:6 reminds us that “The promises of God are pure like silver refined in the furnace seven times over”. Instead of seeing the answer by faith, we see the insurmountable problem! We magnify the problem and minimize the promise. Can you identify with this at times? Let’s thank God for the Calebs and Joshuas that he sends in our lives!

Deuteronomy 31:6 says “So be strong and courageous! Do not fear nor panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.” Fear paralyzed “the terrified ten”. Faith forged ahead “the trusting two”. Don’t stop unless God tells you to.  As we travel toward our upcoming promised land, let’s keep going forward in faith and not miss God’s best! God decides when we start and stop.

The spies brought back a branch with a single cluster of grapes so large that it took two to carry it on a pole between them and samples of pomegranates and figs. The report to Moses was: “We entered the land you sent us to explore, and it is indeed a bountiful country, a land flowing with milk and honey. Here is the kind of fruit it produces.” Numbers 13:27. Their faith was in God.

Pray your response to the Lord personally, meaningfully and genuinely!

Reflect on:  What influences your perspective and approach to various situations and challenges! Let God decide your start and finish. Allow God to use this in your life today.