“And Caleb said to Joshua: ‘You know the word which the LORD said to Moses the man of God concerning you and me in Kadesh Barnea. I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh Barnea to spy out the land, and I brought back word to him as it was in my heart. Nevertheless my brethren who went up with me made the heart of the people melt, but I wholly followed the LORD my God…And now, behold, the LORD has kept me alive, as He said, these forty-five years, ever since the LORD spoke this word to Moses while Israel wandered in the wilderness; and now, here I am this day, eighty-five years old. As yet I am as strong this day as on that day that Moses sent me; just as my strength was then, so now is my strength for war, both for going out and for coming in. Now therefore, give me this mountain…’”
Joshua 14:6-12
Caleb was 40 years old when he was sent to spy out the Promise Land. He was 40 years old when he heard Moses give the charge that God had a destiny for Israel. He was 40 years old when he saw the cluster of grapes that took two men to carry. Caleb saw it, tasted it, yet he would not return to the Promise Land for another 45 years. He would have to wander in a wilderness because of the unbelief of a few men (Numbers 13).
He learned a lot in the wilderness. He learned to trust God for everything, and God showed up in extraordinary ways. But Caleb knew that it was not his end. He knew it was not God’s perfect will for him to be in dry places. He knew he was born for the Promise Land, a land flowing with milk and honey.
Then he went from 40 to 50 years old, from 50 to 60 years old, from 70 to 80 years old, and he was still in the wilderness. Years became decades. One would think he’d become bitter and offended because of the choices of other men, but he didn’t. We can learn from Caleb.
We might be in a “wilderness” right now, and it may be the result of our own mistakes or another’s mistake. Yet Caleb shows us that while he was in the wilderness, the wilderness was not in him. He refused to allow himself to be the victim and byproduct of his environment.
Caleb also shows us that he wasn’t moved by time; he was moved by God’s promise. The wilderness season might be a day, a week, a month, a year, or even years. Caleb was in the wilderness for 40 years. Let’s not be moved by time. Let’s not occupy ourselves with our age and how much time has passed or how much time was wasted. God can always redeem the time. He wants the promise, not the calendar, to possess you.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
Maybe this year has been challenging; maybe it has felt like a wilderness. God wants us to be occupied with His promise. Caleb had a 45-year-old promise buried within his heart, and that one promise sustained him. The promises of God can carry you from day to day, month to month, and decade to decade. The promises of God will lift you out of sickness, doubt, depression, and hopelessness. They will strengthen you no matter the wilderness and empower you to say, “I am as strong this day as I was that day…therefore give me this mountain!”
What promise from God’s Word are you standing on? What promise in His word has become a reality in your heart? I encourage you today to get a promise from God’s Word because in Christ, they are all yes and amen. (Jonathan Vasquez
TODAY’S DECLARATION
“I am strong in the Lord, empowered through my union with Jesus and I draw my strength from Him, that strength which His boundless might provides.”
TODAY’S BIBLE READING
Our Bible Reading Plan gives 25 daily readings per month. There is no scheduled reading for today. You can use this time to catch up on any readings you may have missed, or read through previous passages again.
