A new name for a new location

Well, here we are, three weeks into our status as South Carolina citizens. We are now living in Moncks Corner, SC. If you'll e-mail me, I will be glad to send you our exact address.
Speaking of moving, our Bible reading yesterday was the introduction to the book of the Recapitulation of the Covenant (otherwise known as Deuteronomy). In this chapter, Moses gathers the people and prepares them for a reminder concerning what lies ahead by giving them an outline of their history since they left Egypt, and reminding them of God's sovereignty and their need for His guidance and protection.

The history points out how God has dealt toward them by showing His power in discrediting the gods of Egypt and bringing them out of their slavery. He brings them to Mount Sinai after miraculously opening up the Red Sea so that they can cross on dry land. He then tells Moses to make the preparations for entering the land of Canaan.

As I read this passage, I was surprised to see a detail which I had not seen before-- the idea of sending spies out to check out the land was not Moses' idea nor God's, but it came from the people. Another detail was that they all came back with a very good report.

So, how come they did not go right in and conquer the land immediately? It was a conflict of WILLS. It was GOD's will vs. Israel's will. Moses points out that "you were unwilling to go up: you rebelled against the command of the Lord your God." (Deut. 1:26) This was not an intellectual battle. They had seen God's work, so they knew He could do what He promised. They had seen the land, so they knew that the land was good. But there was another force at work here: There was a total lack of trust in God. Only two out of twelve were willing to trust His promises. Instead, the other ten led the chorus of "grumbling", an undercurrent of insinuations and detractions which questioned God's good will toward them. The result was that the people were discouraged (they lost heart), and a whole generation lost out on God's blessing. They saw enemies everywhere, but did not take into consideration the huge advantage they had by having God on their side. Nothing Moses could say was able to dissuade them. They were not about to trust. They could not see the truth of what Moses said "...God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place." (1:31) When I read this verse, I was reminded of the poem which many of us have read, and which has brought tears to my eyes on more than one occasion-- "Footprints" describes in the form of a dream this very fact. When we can only see one pair of footprints in the sand, it is not because God has abandoned us, but rather because He has picked us up and carried us through a difficult situation.

As we enter this new phase, I pray that our precious Lord will make each of us aware of His daily presence in our lives, and that we will be willing to follow Him here in the Corner--not hiding away or grumbling, but valiantly forging ahead in the confidence that He is with us at all times, and will pick us up and carry us when the circumstances seem unbearable.

Have a wonderful day trusting Him, and depending on Him!!