Saturday, October 8, 2011

9. Scaredy-Cat Spies


After this Thursday’s Mop Room meeting was opened with prayer and a welcome to a visitor the leader of the gang, Ol’ Zeb with his silver mustache, spoke to everyone with a big warm smile. “Oh am I excited to share this lesson with all of you. I absolutely love spy stories from God’s word.” He said caressing his old worn Bible. But this story is even juicier because it’s about scaredy-cat spies.”

You know I can enjoy comfort and peace even reading true stories about scaredy-cat spies,” he said to everyone. “Let’s jump in. You look in your bibles so you know I’m not joshin’ ya!” Another big grin for all the gang that needed smiles and comfort they certainly weren’t going to see at home.

Gang, we’ve been learning to find comfort and peace for our own hearts by seeing in His Precious Word how God takes care of us. But today I want to show you that our comfort and peace also comes from our obedience to God, even when our eyes and ears tell us not to.”

Now the Israelite nation had just been freed from being slaves in Egypt and crossed the Red Sea when God parted it for them. Do you remember? Well they were given lots of rules on how to build and operate their portable church they called the Tabernacle. But that wasn’t the best gift God had for them. He gave them a whole big land with lots of food and animals and a lot of room to grow.”

But there was one problem. Other people were already living there. And worse than that, some of the people were giants who certainly didn’t love the true and living God or anyone else who did!”

Now God promised His Israelites that the land and animals would be theirs. That’s one reason it’s called the ‘Promised Land’. Well, God had Moses send out 12 spies to check out the land, people, and how high the walls were, around their cities. Just so they could be prepared.”

It turns out that 10 of the 12 spies came back and gave scaredy-cat reports about what they had seen in the land God had promised to them. They were so afraid of the giants that the scaredy-cat spies thought of themselves as little grasshoppers.”

Zeb told the boys and girls, “Now the reason I’m teaching you this lesson is because I believe there are some days that you are really scared by the people or problems you see out in front of you. But down deep in your heart you already know God has promised that He would never leave us or forsake us. Remember? He’s given you young people a guardian angel that’s always on watch.”

The two spies that were not scaredy-cats were Joshua and Caleb. Listen to what they told the people… it’s right here starting in Numbers 14:7:

And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defense is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not.

Joshua and Caleb were telling the people that God is with us when we obey Him and we shouldn’t be afraid of things out there. Gang, let’s read that again because I want to show you what I call ‘comfort cake’,” Zeb said with his warm grin. They read it again and emphasized the six words, ‘for they are bread for us’.” Slapping his leg in joy Zeb exclaimed, “I love it! I love it! Gang, they were saying, ‘This is a piece of cake.’ ‘It’s easy as pie!’

When you see trouble ahead all you have to do is remember God’s promises and what He’s already done for you, and those giant problems will tumble just like David learned with his sling against Goliath the giant.