Thought of the Day 05.30.08

There are things in the Bible that make us feel warm and fuzzy, and there are things that can be terrifying. For instance, the Scriptures teach us that God is patient and forgiving, which can give us the impression that we’ll always have tomorrow to do His Will. But there’s another side to God as well, and the story of the Hebrews failing to enter Canaan vividly captures it. After sending the twelve spies to scout the land, they returned with a conflicted report, and the people chose fear over faith by refusing to enter.

As a penalty, they wandered in the wilderness for forty years, eating the most boring food you could imagine, and then died without ever seeing the promised land. Now I know the story doesn’t record this, but over time, you’ve got to imagine that people regretted their choice. But it was too late. They had their chance to choose faith, and they blew it, big time.

And every time I’m tempted to think that I’ll just do the right thing tomorrow, I remember that sometimes God requires it today. As the Bible even says, tomorrow is promised to no man.