Daily Devotionals

Their defense has been taken away from them ....Don't be afraid of them! (Numbers 14:9)

In one of our congregational Purim plays, based on the Book of Esther, we performed the scene where Vashti received word from the king to come to his party and display her great beauty. Angered by this, Vashti (appropriately renamed Smashti for the sake of our parody) demolished a table and several chairs. With a few swift kicks and swipes of the hand, all that remained was a heap of wood. Was our actress a martial arts expert or endowed with incredible strength? Not at all. Prior to the play, the furniture had been sawed through in numerous places leaving only slivers of wood holding them together. Yet, to the unsuspecting audience, they appeared to be perfectly sound.

Returning from the Promised Land, the ten spies discouraged Israel because what they had witnessed there seemed too substantial to conquer. What could they do against fortified cities with massive walls and giants inside? Yet Joshua and Caleb sought to help Israel see with the eyes of faith. Regardless of how things appeared, there was no need to fear. God had already gone ahead of them and "sawed through" the enemy's defenses. All that Israel needed to do was strike and their enemies would fall.

...not fear obstacles and challenges that are beyond my natural abilities, for I know that if God has said to go forward, he has already made a way.

MM