Trust in God Invigorates!

Numbers 13:2

Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I give to the people of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers shall you send a man, every one a leader among them.

Ten of the men who spied out Canaan, “leaders” all, went to pieces when they saw how beautiful (and how populated) the land was.  They came back with wildly exaggerated traveler’s tales about how lush the agriculture was and how huge the big hairy guys were who lived there.  Ten of the spies said “We look like grasshoppers next to them!” and panicked.  Two of the spies, Caleb and Joshua, said, “Look.  If God said the land is ours then he oughtta know.”  Israel, lapsing into modernity idolatry of democracy, went with the majority opinion and bailed out on the whole “conquest of Canaan” idea.  That generation died in the desert.  Only Caleb and Joshua remained and entered Canaan forty years later.  When they did, they found the land occupied by people no taller than they.  And Israel defeated them.  Fear exaggerates.  Trust in God invigorates.

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Mark P. Shea is a popular Catholic writer and speaker. The author of numerous books, his most recent work is The Work of Mercy (Servant) and The Heart of Catholic Prayer (Our Sunday Visitor). Mark contributes numerous articles to many magazines, including his popular column “Connecting the Dots” for the National Catholic Register. Mark is known nationally for his one minute “Words of Encouragement” on Catholic radio. He also maintains the Catholic and Enjoying It blog and regularly blogs for National Catholic Register. He lives in Washington state with his wife, Janet, and their four sons.

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