Catching Fog

“Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory.

“No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go.

“This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:3-9)

Fear comes easily, suddenly, and without any effort or practice. It is often the smart response. Hope is a bit harder to make happen and can seem foolish. Moses was dead, and the Promised Land remained in enemy hands. Joshua was overwhelmed. He was scared. Not only did he face the burden of leading armies into battle against a powerful enemy, but he also had to face the Israelites whom he knew would be quick to compare him with the recently-dead Moses. How could he ever hope to fill those shoes?

But God appeared and reassured him that just as he had been with Moses, so he would be with Joshua. And since God would walk with him, he had nothing to fear. Fear exists in the land of doubt, in the shadow of trouble. God relieved Joshua’s doubts. He promised to relieve his troubles. He told Joshua that he loved him and would stand with him. Knowing that he was not facing the future alone, Joshua’s courage was restored.

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He told them, “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Tomorrow is a day of complete rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord. Bake what you want to bake, and boil what you want to boil, and everything left over set aside to be kept until morning.’”

So they set it aside until morning as Moses commanded, and it didn’t smell or have any maggots in it. “Eat it today,” Moses said, “because today is a Sabbath to the Lord. Today you won’t find any in the field. For six days you may gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will be none.”

Yet on the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, but they did not find any. Then the Lord said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep My commands and instructions? Understand that the Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore on the sixth day He will give you two days’ worth of bread. Each of you stay where you are; no one is to leave his place on the seventh day.” So the people rested on the seventh day.

The house of Israel named the substance manna. It resembled coriander seed, was white, and tasted like wafers made with honey. (Exodus 16:23-3)

“There’s nothing to eat!” say our children when they can’t find the one food item they are craving. Soon after, they may complain that we hate them and have ruined their lives if we don’t immediately go to the grocery store and get it. Perhaps it’s not so odd that God called his people the children of Israel. They complained about their hunger. Not necessarily an unreasonable thing to do. But one day rather than simply announcing that they were hungry, or asking how much longer before supper, they were sullen. They believed that they would never eat again and that in fact God had brought them to where they were for the express purpose of making them die a miserable death. It was one thing to be hungry and let someone know about it. It was another thing entirely to accuse that someone of evil intent.

Despite that accusation, however, God fed his people—just as a parent we will feed our sometimes bratty children because, bratty or not, they are our children and we love them and want what’s best for them: we want them to be healthy and happy and to lack for nothing. God felt the same way about his people as we feel about our kids, however annoying they might get—and even when they break the rules. We don’t starve our children or fail to care for them just because they come in past curfew or “forgot” to study for their history test. And God’s a better parent than we can ever hope to be.

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The LORD said to Abram:

Leave your country, your family, and your relatives and go to the land that I will show you. I will bless you and make your descendants into a great nation. You will become famous and be a blessing to others. I will bless anyone who blesses you, but I will put a curse on anyone who puts a curse on you. Everyone on earth will be blessed because of you.

Abram was seventy-five years old when the LORD told him to leave the city of Haran. He obeyed and left with his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the possessions and slaves they had gotten while in Haran.
When they came to the land of Canaan, Abram went as far as the sacred tree of Moreh in a place called Shechem. The Canaanites were still living in the land at that time, but the LORD appeared to Abram and promised, “I will give this land to your family forever.” Abram then built an altar there for the LORD. (Genesis 12:1-)

Just because you think you know what to expect from life, doesn’t mean you do. Abraham was an old man when God called Abraham from the city of Haran. By the world’s standards, his life was nearly done. It was past time to retire. He was just an ordinary man, living in the Middle East, one of millions of people alive on the planet in that day. And God decided to pick him. What made Abraham special was not who he was, but who God was. Abraham became extraordinary—even in his twilight years—because God chose him. God did not choose Abraham because he was extraordinary. God chose Abraham because he loved him.
The promise that God gave Abraham when he told him to pack up and move to what would someday be the land of Israel had no strings attached. Regardless of Abraham’s character or choices, God told him that he was going to become famous, he’d be happy, and his descendents would become a great nation. Moreover, he protected Abraham and those who would come in contact with him or his descendents: those who blessed Abraham would themselves be blessed, and those who cursed him would be cursed. God takes care of those who belong to him and woe to any who try to harm those God has chosen.

Abraham responds to the news by going where God told him to go, and by building an alter to God. Abraham didn’t know much about this God, but he decided to pay attention to him. God can use us no matter where we are in life.

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