Deuteronomy 1:2 It is eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of Mount Seir to Kadesh-barnea.
We cannot shorten our journey but we can lengthen it by our distractions, diversions and dissolutions. The journey of Exodus from Egypt to the Promised Land was only 11 days but the Israelites sojourned in the wilderness for 40 years before they inherited Canaan. Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years (Deuteronomy 8:2a).
Travel Time from point A to point B on a vehicle cannot be shortened. Of the top ten common causes of road accidents ‘speeding’, ‘distracted driving’ and ‘influence of substance’ are the top three. Speeding does not shorten the travel time; it could elongate our journey and put others at risk. The fear of the Nephilim in land detained the Israelites in the wilderness for 40 years! Distracted by the giants, the people rebelled against the Lord and refused to fight for their inheritance. They expected the land to be ready, empty and tidy.
‘Experiments by psychologists have shown that the more people pay for something, the more they value it.’
God’s plan was to make the ‘slaves’, ‘sergeants’ and give the Promised Land into the untrained army by fighting for them. He had promised over and over again that the army of the Lord of Hosts would fight for them (Deuteronomy 20:4). The Lord God did not allow them to sight the giants to faint but to become fervent in their faith. However, they failed to understand the plan and the psychology/(mind) of God hence they prolonged their 11 days’ journey to 40 years!
We cannot shorten but we can lengthen our journey:
1. Distract: Distractions can stretch our stay in the wilderness. Stop looking at others and comparing their growth, promotions or increase. These are distractions that will slow us down and lengthen our travel time.
2. Diversion: We try jumping lanes to go faster but the lane we move into slows down. This is true with the challenges of life. Running away from problems does not make the crisis vanish. Israelites wanted to run away from the challenge rather than bolstering their faith. And they said to each other, “We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt.” (Numbers 14:4). God did not bring us thus far to chain us back into slavery.
3. Dissolution: The journey will be full of surprises. Get excited about the unknowns around the corner. The unexpected challenges help us to unfurl the potent and power of our God. “Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.” (Numbers 14:9). God will break through the dead-end and the dissolution. The crises that we face are not dissolutions but opportunities for divine miracles.
We cannot avoid the wilderness but we can lengthen it with our disbelief and distractions.
Psalm 78:40 – How often they rebelled against Him in the wilderness. And grieved Him in the desert!
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help me to strengthen my faith through the challenges I face. May my choices never lengthen my journey through the wilderness. Amen.
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