Thursday, March 12, 2009
Taken from Pst Kong's daily devotion:
http://www.konghee.com/www/?p=2543Don’t Limit Yourself11 Mar 2009
Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.” Numbers 13:30
In Numbers 13, the children of Israel had come to Kadesh Barnea, the border of the with a bad report, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. There we saw the giants; and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight” (Num. 13:32-33).
There are always “giants” in life. The greater the level you soar, the bigger the devil. Paul says that the life of faith is a good fi ght (1 Tim. 6:12). It is “good” because when we put our trust in the Lord, we will win at the end of every bout.
But still, to win in life, you must be willing to fight.
There is no greater fear than fear itself. There is a difference between the fear of the Lord and phobia. Godly fear is reverence toward God, the desire to please Him and cautiousness not to displease Him in any way. This is a good fear that leads to wisdom and faith.
On the other hand, a phobia is a crippling and horrifying dread. Phobias lead to worry, anxiety and paranoia.
Fear of men, circumstances and evil spirits paralyze you from possessing your dream. God says, “Fear not, for I am with you” (Is. 43:5).Without faith, the children of Israel spiraled downward into widespread panic and hysteria when they heard about the giants in the Promised Land. The first thought that came to their mind was, “Let us select a leader and return to Egypt” (Num. 14:4). Whenever there was trouble, they wanted to go back. They may have gotten out of Egypt, but Egypt had not gotten out of them.
The word “Egypt” in Hebrew means to be hemmed in, or to be limited. The Israelites came out of the harsh bondage of Egypt where their lives, dreams, future and opportunities were severely limited. God broke those shackles of limitations and gave them freedom. But mentally, their thought pattern was still one of doubt and fear. The result? They “limited the Holy One of Israel” (Ps. 78:41). Apart from Joshua and Caleb, that entire generation of doubters didn’t enter the Promised Land.
Faith puts no limit on God, and God puts no limit on faith. Remember, God “is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us” (Eph. 3:20). The moment you succeed in breaking a limitation in your mind, there is no question whatsoever that God can follow through and make that thought a reality in your life.
