“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

Lord God, I understand why most of Israel didn’t want to go into the Promised Land. They saw the giants and they were scared. They were afraid of being defeated. They were afraid of being killed. I get it because I am so like this. I look at the so-called giants in my life and I get scared too. I’m not as much afraid of dying as I am afraid of failing. I’m afraid of looking like a fool. I’m afraid of losing people’s esteem or friendship. I’m afraid of all kinds of things and that fear leads me to pull back from doing what I know is the right thing. Lord God, Joshua and Caleb knew that there were things to be scared of, but knew that your command and your promise was bigger than anything else. You had commanded them to go in and you had promised to be with them and to give them the land. Fear should not have been on the table because there was nothing to fear; God was going to do hand the land over into their hands. Lord God, you do the same for me. You have given me commands and amazing promises. You have promised to be with me just as you promised to be with them. You have promised to work through me and to work in my life for my good, just as you did here. Lord God, help me to focus my heart on your commands and promises and not on the “giants” that rise up on my life. Teach me that I have nothing to fear because you are near. Amen.