February 19th

February 19th -- Numbers 13:1-14:4 (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers%2013:1-14:4&version=NLT)

Twelve scouts explore Canaan and the people begin to rebel.

So Moses, at God's command, sends out a leader from each of the twelve tribes to go and explore Canaan. He tells them basically to go and examine the land and report back to him. The men go out and follow the route Moses gave them and explored the land for forty days, the returned. They describe it as a bountiful land, "flowing with milk and honey". However, the men also report giants and say the men are strong and will be hard to conquer.

For some reason, Caleb, one of the men who went to explore, thinks they can conquer it, while the other 11 disagree. The word of the other 11 spread like wildfire, about how the land is filled with giants and they will never be able to overtake it.

This stirs up rebellion in the people, who begin crying out and asking why God would bring them out of Egypt just to have them die in battle. They begin plotting, then, to choose a new leader.

Now, can I just say, that this kind of really frustrates me? God brought these people out of Egypt and has fed them fromt he sky every day since. He has provided this whole time and they have witnessed so many incredibly miracles... and yet they have the gall to doubt Him? It astounds me... then again, I guess I'm a bit hypocritical in saying that... I had a point in my life where I doubted and disbelieved... mind you, I think if I'd seen any of those miracles I'd have jumped right back on the bandwagon. Haha.

Also, this shows how careful we must be with words and gossip. Those few words became that juicy bit of gossip. Everyone wanted to hear about the terrible giants in the land. How incredible it was was forgotten, as well as God's promise to give it to them, as people focused on the stories of the ever-growing giant men and terrible beasts (well, okay maybe not beasts haha) that lived there and would kill them all in battle. This was all because a little bit of truth got a little out of hand and each time it was passed on, a little more lie was mixed in, until it became a fish tale. That tiny little rock bass became a two-foot musky. So, be careful with your words, and don't spread gossip's fire - squash it out.

That is all for tonight, folks! God bless! :D