Treating God with Contempt

God has put Numbers 13 and 14 in front of me a “number” of times in the last few months (play on words intended).  I know you can take it too far but I do believe that the promised land is a great picture of what we are doing with starting a new church.  God gave the new land to his people in the Old Testament just like he wants us to start a new church here in the New Testament.  So, in a sense we are in the “spying” stage.  We are getting to know that community that we live in better.

We have talked both as a launch team but also with the group of college students who walked the neighborhoods last week, “What do we see that is milk, honey, and fruit and what do we see that are the giants?”  To list all that out here would distract from the point I want to make.  Let me get to that.

Remember that Moses sent 12 spies into the land.  Each one of them saw the great things AND the challenges but in their report to the people, 10 of the spies emphasizing only the negative.  They spread a bad report that ended up causing a great deal of fear among the people.  That fear lead to complaining and wanting to go back to Egypt.  Joshua and Caleb get on their case and challenge them to not rebel against the Lord and to not be afraid.

There’s a lot to digest in what Joshua and Caleb told the people but the phrase that grabbed me this morning was what God said just after that, “How long will these people treat me with contempt? Will they never believe me, even after all the miraculous signs I have done among them?”  Ouch!

While I might not use the term “miraculous signs,” I’ve seen over and over again, God’s hand doing some pretty cool stuff as we prepare to launch Gateway:Kamm’s.  The way a friend put it the other day was “God is showing you favor.”  For that I am grateful.  But I must keep on believing.  There’s a big part of me that wonders if we can really do it!

I’ve been really down this week.  I feel like I’m spinning my wheels and not getting much done.  I’m “putting in the time” but I’m overwhelmed by the task list.  I’m starting to worry about the money.  I feel like I’m not doing a good job in a number of areas.

And so, this morning God and I had a little chat.  He reminded me that I’ve got to believe.  It’s that simple right now.  We haven’t entered the land yet but I’ve got to believe that he will take care of the giants for us.  I must not be rebellious and complain.  I’ve got to trust in God and be obedient.

Will you pray for me and our team?