The people were on the verge of the Promised Land and Moses was giving them his last words to equip them for the crossing:
"Observe therefore all the commands I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and take over the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, and so that you may live long in the land the Lord swore to your ancestors to give to them and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey" (Deuteronomy 11:8-9).
Moses explained to the people that obedience to God's commands was in their best interests if they wanted to make the most of their occupation of their God-given territory. If they obeyed, he promised they would have the "strength to go in and take over" after they had exerted energy to "cross over the Jordan." Then they would "live long" in the Land. What does this tell us?
If you are going to do God's will, you will need many things to do so. Two of them are the strength or energy (let's call them health) and the time to fulfill long-term projects (let's refer to this as life span). If you are obedient to God's moral code with the Spirit's help and you accept your allotment of good deeds to do, you will have the health and life span to do what you need to do. Perhaps this is best summarized by Proverbs 12:11: "Those who work their land will have abundant food, but those who chase fantasies have no sense."
Do you have the good sense to obey God by accepting His life assignment of your purpose and creativity? Do you have the stamina and organizational wisdom to do what is in your heart to do? What changes do you need to make to engage and embrace the fullness of the Promised Land God has for you for the rest of your life?
Comments