Our Biggest Enemy

They had witnessed God do incredible things. For generations they had been enslaved and miraculously God delivered them. This generation of the Children of Israel didn't just hear about the parting of the Red Sea, they watched it happened. They were the ones who walked on dry land while the mighty sea became a wall of water held back by the very hand of God. They experienced supernatural provision in the wilderness. They woke up every morning to a meal provided by God, Himself. They witnessed as God provided water in the desert. There was no doubt that God was real and that God was with them.

God did not simply deliver them from slavery but had promised to bring them to a land that flowed with milk and honey. A place referred to as the Promised Land. Excited by the prospect of a new life in a wonderful place, their world came crashing down when they discovered that this land that God had promised them was inhabited by giants. Scripture tells us that the "hearts of the people melted."

I think I can relate. My heart has melted many times over the course of my life. Times when what I wanted, what I dreamed of seemed an impossibility. Times when what I pictured in my head was not what I saw with my eyes. Times when the opposition that stood before me was bigger and more powerful than me. I get it. I get what was going through their heads as they stood at the border of the Promised Land only to see giants standing in the way.

Everyone of us faces giants in life. Opposing forces that are determined to keep us from all that God has in store for us. There they stand intimidating us. Daring us to continue. Taunting us, tormenting us, and bullying us. These giants manifest in countless different ways. Their weapons are intimidation, manipulation, and deception. They stand there glaring at us, flexing their muscles in an effort to remind us of just how big they are. Their goal is to paralyze us. It's to keep us bound by fear and to convince us that we are powerless against them. They spew their lies and deception hoping that they will take hold in our hearts rendering us defeated. Lies like, "You are incapable and inadequate." "You can't, you won't, you never will." "You'll never be good enough." "Nobody loves you." "You are all alone in this world." "You don't have what it takes." "God could never use someone like you." "You're an idiot and a moron." The moment we allow one of these lies to take root, these giants have the upper hand.

The Children of Israel believed the lies. This particular generation saw the Promised Land in front of them yet never got to take possession of it. They lived a life far below the kind of life that God wanted for them. They died having seen what could have been but never got to experience it. How unfortunate.

It's interesting to note that the very next generation went into the Promised Land. Nothing had changed regarding the giants that they faced. They were still there and were as big as ever. So, what changed? What was different? The generation that took possession of the Promised Land wasn't a generation of mighty warriors. They weren't a mighty army trained in the art of warfare. They hadn't hit the weight room and bulked up and juiced up. The only thing that had changed was what they believed in their hearts. The previous generation was intimidated by the size of their opposition and believed the lie that God was not able to fulfill what He had promised. They focused on the size of those who were against them rather than on the One who was for them. The truth is that the giants did not keep them from the Promised Land, the lie they believed did. Our biggest enemy is not the giants that stand in our way. Our biggest enemy is believing the lie that our God is not bigger.

God longs to be believed! Regardless of what is going on in the world around us, God longs for us to just believe Him. You'll be amazed at how many giants fall when we simply trust that what God says is true. God does not lie, the giants do. Who and what you believe is completely up to you. What you believe will either propel you into God's best for your life or it'll cause you to live a life that you were never meant to live. What we believe in our hearts is the key to being who God says we are and doing what He says we can do. "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life" (Proverbs 4:23 NKJV).

Author: Tim Stone

Tim is the lead pastor at Westlake Fellowship in Montgomery, Texas. If you live in the area, join us Sunday mornings at 10:30 am at 19786 Hwy 105 Suite 120 in Montgomery (beside Magnolia Diner).

www.westlakefellowship.org

Click here to get a copy of Tim's book, "Yep, Even That One: a believer's guide to loving your neighbor"