I began studying the questions from God about three years ago and am amazed at how they continue to impact me. I’ve watched God work in the lives of others through His questions and I want to continue sharing this perspective with other people. This blog has been one venue for that and I thank all of you for participating.

Currently, I am compiling a Questions from God Study Guide for use in a small groups. I would like to hear how this study has impacted you and I welcome any comments you have regarding content. You may comment to this post or you may send your comments to me at questionsfromgod@gmail.com

I am developing a Questions from God website and would like to quote some of the comments I’ve received from this blog and your e-mails. Please let me know if you prefer that I not use your comments online for public viewing.  

We have looked at all the questions from God in the first five books of the Bible (Pentateuch) and the book of Job. The questions were asked in ancient times, but they are still relevant for us today. Out of all the questions we’ve studied, which ones were the most meaningful to you? Why? Has your perspective of God changed through this study? How so?

• Where are you?
• Who told you that you were naked?
• Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?
• What is this you have done?

•  Why are you angry?
• And why has your countenance fallen?
• If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up?
• Where is Abel your brother?
• What have you done?

Hagar

• Hagar, Sarai’s maid, where have you come from and where are you going?
• What is the matter, Hagar?

Abraham and Sarah

• Where is Sarah your wife?
• Why did Sarah laugh, saying, “Shall I indeed bear a child, when I am so old?”
• Is anything too difficult for the Lord?
  Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation and in him all nations of the earth shall be blessed?

Job

• From where do you come? (addressed to Satan)
• Have you considered my servant Job? (addressed to Satan)
• Who is this that darkens council by words without knowledge?
• Who has given to Me that I should repay him?

(for a complete list of God’s questions in the book of Job, visit the Job category post titled “The Voice from the Whirlwind”

Jacob

• What is your name?
• Why is it that you ask My name?

Moses

• What is that in your hand?
• Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?
• Is there not your brother Aaron the Levite?

Moses and the Israelites (Part I)

• Why are you crying out to Me?
• How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My instructions?
• Is the Lord’s power limited?

Questions to Miriam and Aaron

• Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant, and against Moses?
• If her father had but spit in her face, would she not bear her shame for seven days?

Moses and the Israelites (Part II)

• How long will this people spurn Me?
• And how long will they not believe in Me, despite all the signs which I have performed in their midst?
• How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who are grumbling against Me?

Balaam

• Who are these men with you?
• Why have you struck your donkey these three times?
• As a lion, who dares rouse him?

Song of Moses

• Do you thus repay the Lord, O foolish and unwise people?
• Is not He your Father who has bought you?
• How could one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, and the Lord had given them up?
• Is it not laid up in store with Me, sealed up in My treasuries?
• Where are their gods, the rock in which they sought refuge?
• Who ate the fat of their sacrifices, and drank the wine of their drink offering?

God asked many, many more questions in the Bible and I look forward to studying them with you sometime. For now, this will be the final post on this blog as I will be refining the materials for the questions we’ve studied thus far and preparing for the question studies to come. I thank God for your participation in this journey. May you be blessed by God as you continue to seek Him and respond to Him.

Prayerfully yours,
Misty

Speaking of the Israelites, in verses 26-31, God then says,

I would have said, “I will cut them to pieces, I will remove the memory of them from men,” Had I not feared the provocation by the enemy, That their adversaries would misjudge, That they would say, “Our hand is triumphant, And the Lord has not done all this.” For they are a nation lacking in counsel, And there is no understanding in them. Would that they were wise, that they understood this, That they would discern their future! How could one chase a thousand, And two put ten thousand to flight, Unless their Rock had sold them, And the Lord had given them up? Indeed their rock is not like our Rock, Even our enemies themselves judge this.

When the Israelite nation disobeyed, God would use other nations to discipline them. Even so, God was concerned that other nations would think they were powerful over Israel when it was God allowing other nations to triumph over Israel. No matter what the odds were, God would determine the victor. He asked,

How could one chase a thousand, And two put ten thousand to flight, Unless their Rock had sold them, And the Lord had given them up?

How could a small nation defeat a larger nation unless God had guided the outcome? Any nation that triumphed over Israel achieved that victory because God had determined that they would. God used the other nations to discipline Israel not because the other nations were righteous, but because Israel needed to be honed. Israel belonged to God and He would punish the nations that brought destruction on His children.

The remainder of the song, verses 32-43, paints a picture of how God would vindicate His children. The historical books of the Bible (such as Chronicles and Kings) describe the adversaries of Israel. Other nations followed gods that required self-mutilation, human sacrifice, and indescribable suffering inflicted upon children. Even though Israel would be shaped by the conflicts they endured with these nations, God would not allow those nations to go unpunished.

God’s remaining questions in the song refer to these evil nations.

Is it not laid up in store with Me, Sealed up in My treasuries?

The “it” in the question refers to God’s vengeance against other nations. Vengeance belonged to God and He would punish the other nations.

Where are their gods, The rock in which they sought refuge?

When the other nations fell, they would realize that their gods were not able to save them.

Who ate the fat of their sacrifices, And drank the wine of their drink offering?

All the time that the various nations were offering sacrifices and spending themselves and their children on the altars of the false gods, who was it that was actually benefitting? Who took their sacrifices and wine offerings? The heart-wrenching truth is that their sacrifices went to nothing. The death of their children was for no good and their self-mutilation was in vain. Their wines were either poured out on an altar only to dry up or they were taken by the selfish false priests of the pagan religions. Either way, the people gave and gave, but never received anything in return.

The song of Moses ends with an encouragement that God will atone for His people.

No matter the course of events, God is sovereign and His character is consistent. He acts towards His children with the same care that has always been in His nature. Sometimes we disobey God and He brings discipline upon us in whatever form He deems best. And sometimes other people hurt us through their own sin when we have done nothing wrong.

In times of trials, the best thing we can do is remember Who God is and His character. When we are hard pressed, a song can help us do that very thing. Just as the Song of Moses helped the Israelites to remember God, a song can help us to do the same.

When you face trials, disappointments, or failure, do you listen to encouraging songs that remind you of God’s goodness? Do you listen to music that is based in Scripture and can focus your mind on the truth? Do you have a favorite song that describes God’s character?

After Moses recited the words of the song to the people, he told them,

Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law. They are not just idle words for you – they are your life. By them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess. (Deuteronomy 32:46-47)

In the same way God spoke through Balaam, the song that God gave Moses contained references to Himself. In other words, the song mentions the Lord from the perspective of someone speaking about the Lord, even though the Lord Himself provided the song.

The first four verses of the song begin with praise to God:

Give ear, O heavens, and let me speak; And let the earth hear the words of my mouth. Let my teaching drop as the rain, My speech distill as the dew, As the droplets on the fresh grass And as the showers on the herb. For I proclaim the name of the Lord; Ascribe greatness to our God! The Rock! His work is perfect, For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He.

The people had spent forty years wandering through desert lands so the very beginning of the song gave them a visual picture of the rain they must have so appreciated. The tone changes in verses 5 and 6 to describe the disobedience of the people of Israel. We read the first two questions in the song:

They have acted corruptly toward Him, They are not His children, because of their defect; But are a perverse and crooked generation. Do you thus repay the Lord, O foolish and unwise people? Is not He your Father who has bought you? He has made you and established you.

Generally, parents and their children have similar physical features, traditions, and vocabularies, but there would come a time when the people’s disobedience to the Lord gave them no likeness to God at all. Remember the purpose of this song; it was to be handed down the generations as a testimony to the people. God knew that they would stray and He gave this song to them in advance to display His sovereignty and foreknowledge.

The first two questions in the song are placed together, but we will look at them separately. The first question concerns the disobedient actions of the people whom God had cared for,

Do you thus repay the Lord, O foolish and unwise people?

The people disregarded God’s provision and followed other gods. Verses 7-14 describe what the Lord had done for the people and how He provided for them:

Remember the days of old, Consider the years of all generations. Ask your father, and he will inform you, your elders, and they will tell you. When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, When He separated the sons of man, He set the boundaries of the peoples According to the number of the sons of Israel. For the Lord’s portion is His people; Jacob is the allotment of His inheritance. He found him in a desert land, and in the howling waste of a wilderness; He encircled him, He cared for him, He guarded him as the pupil of His eye. Like an eagle that stirs up its nest, that hovers over its young, He spread His wings and caught them, He carried them on His pinions. The Lord alone guided him, and there was no foreign god with him. He made him ride on the high places of the earth, and he ate the produce of the field; and He made him suck honey from the rock, and oil from the flinty rock, curds of cows, and milk of the flock, with fat of lambs, and rams, the breed of Bashan, and goats, with the finest of the wheat– and of the blood of grapes you drank wine.

Even with God’s miraculous provision, the people chose to ignore Him. Rather than praise Him, they complained and sought other gods. Even so, God gave them another question to testify about Himself:

Is not He your Father who has bought you?

Verse 5 of the song mentioned that the people were not His children because of their defects, but then God includes this question in the song. Regardless of how far the Israelites strayed, who they imitated, or what god they gave themselves over to, the Lord was still the One who had bought them. At times, the Israelite nation had no likeness to God, but He was still their Father.

The word translated “bought” in the Hebrew is kaw-naw, which means more than purchase. It carries with it the idea of creation and establishment. It also includes the ideas of continued possession and jealousy. The Lord did not merely buy the people. He redeemed them for Himself as a lasting possession.

Like the people of Israel, there may be times in our lives when we show little likeness to God and no one would be able to guess that we are His child. We stray and do things contrary to His loving instructions. Even so, for those who believe, He claims us as His own. In our disobedience, we can sense His correction and know that He is still our Father.

That must be how the Israelites felt when they heard the Song of Moses.

The Lord gave Moses a song to help in the transition of leadership from Moses to Joshua. In the presence of the people, Moses declared Joshua his successor. Moses told the Israelites to be courageous and take possession of the land God promised. The Lord predicted to Moses that Israel would rebel by prostituting themselves to foreign gods. The people would be held accountable because they would remember the song. One of the last things Moses did before he died was to pass on to the Israelites the song the Lord gave him. The Lord instructed Moses:

“Now therefore, write this song for yourselves, and teach it to the sons of Israel; put it on their lips, so that this song may be a witness for Me against the sons of Israel. For when I bring them into the land flowing with milk and honey, which I swore to their fathers, and they have eaten and are satisfied and become prosperous, then they will turn to other gods and serve them, and spurn Me and break My covenant. Then it shall come about, when many evils and troubles have come upon them, that this song will testify before them as a witness (for it shall not be forgotten from the lips of their descendants); for I know their intent which they are developing today, before I have brought them into the land which I swore.” So Moses wrote this song the same day, and taught it to the sons of Israel.  (Deuteronomy 31:19-22)

God knew that no matter what kinds of beliefs and habits the people of Israel developed, they would remember the song He gave them.

Music rouses the soul, guides wistful hearts, and awakens memories. Music is the most powerful mood and memory enhancer that I know of. I even remember songs that I have tried to forget. Those who write commercial jingles exploit certain music techniques to make it easy for anyone to remember the words. We’ve all had a song “stuck” in our heads.

What kinds of music do you listen to and how does it affect you? Which songs tend to stick in your head longer? How do you feel when you hear a song that was meaningful to you years ago?

The king eagerly took Balaam to one of the high points in the land to view the Israelites. However, this wasn’t just any high point; it was one of the high places of worship to Baal, the heathen god whose worship included human sacrifice, often infants. Now more than ever, Balaam was standing in the path of sinners.

The king instructed Balaam to curse the Israelites. Balaam spent time alone to consult with the Lord and then returned to ask, “How shall I curse whom God has not cursed? And how can I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?” Balaam went on to bless Israel.

Moab’s king was perplexed and reasoned that the location was not quite right. He took Balaam to yet another high place. Again, Balaam consulted with the Lord and again, rather than cursing Israel, Balaam blessed Israel.

The king took Balaam to a third location. This time something changed. Instead of consulting with the Lord as he had done every time before, Balaam accepted the fact that the Lord’s will was to bless Israel. He didn’t check in with God to see if He had changed His mind. Instead, he set his face towards the wilderness in which the Israelites camped and Scripture tells us that the Spirit of God came upon Balaam. The Lord spoke through Balaam and described not only the prosperity of Israel and her descendants, but also the destruction of her enemies.

God had made it clear to Balaam from the beginning that the king of Moab was in opposition to His will, but Balaam continually went back to God as if God might modify His plan. When Balaam’s heart changed, and he believed what God had said, God’s Spirit joined with him. God can use us and we can do many good things, but only when we are in true belief in and agreement with the Lord, will we enjoy the fullness of His Spirit working through us. It is good to make sure that we are living in accordance with God’s will, and from time to time we need to check with God, and when we know what His will is we should whole-heartedly obey.

There are other examples in Scripture before this point in which the Lord bestowed His Spirit upon people, giving them skills or wisdom, but this is one of the first examples of prophet-like language. When prophets spoke, they would sometimes oscillate between pronouns. Sometimes they spoke the Lord’s words as the Lord Himself (using the pronoun “I”) and sometimes in a third person speaking about the Lord (using the pronoun “He”).

The Spirit was speaking directly through Balaam when the Lord asked this question in reference to Himself,

He couches, he lies down as a lion, And as a lion, who dares rouse him?

The Lord went on to say, “Blessed is everyone who blesses you, and cursed is everyone who curses you.” God had made this promise to Abraham regarding his descendants (Genesis 12:3). Because the king of Moab wanted to curse the Israelites, he was setting himself up to be cursed.

The Lord made it clear that His plans would stand regardless of Israel’s enemies. The Lord, like a lion, would rule and who would dare provoke a lion? The king of Moab provoked the lion when he sought to harm Israel. Balaam went on to speak of Moab’s future destruction.

This is how God cares for those who are His. No matter the purposes of others, their position, or location, God will use any circumstance to bless His children. Even when others desire to curse or harm us, God can use that for our benefit.

Does this remind you of anything in the New Testament?

 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

Furthermore, Romans 8:33-34 reads, “Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.”

We can live confidently, trusting that God will work out His plan regardless of the opposition. If we are walking in His path, in whole-hearted agreement with Him, we will enjoy His Spirit working through us on a level we would otherwise miss. But if we are in the path of sinners, joining with those who live in opposition to God, or continuing in our own personal sins, we will not fully experience the amazing joy of His work through us.

Balaam asked the Lord about the men a second time. This time God gave Balaam permission to go with them; however, Balaam would only do what God spoke to him.

Balaam chose to walk with the unwise. The men from Moab wanted to harm Israel and thus were in direct opposition to the Lord. Just as the proverb says, Balaam found that he soon suffered harm.

The next morning, Balaam saddled his donkey and went with the men from Moab. Balaam was on the “path of sinners” (Psalm 1:1) and the Lord didn’t like it.

Balaam’s donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing on the road with a sword in His hands, so she turned off the path and went into the field. Balaam, who didn’t see the Lord, became angry with the donkey and fought to get her back onto the path.

Next, the Lord stood in the middle of a narrow path with vineyard walls on either side. Resisting again, the donkey pressed against a wall, this time crushing Balaam’s foot. Angry from pain and irritation, Balaam struck her again and she went on.

A third time, the Lord stood in the road and this time Balaam’s donkey laid down. Balaam struck her again. It is at this point, the miraculous occurs and Balaam and his donkey have a conversation. The donkey tries to reason with Balaam by professing her history of obedience to him.

Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes and Balaam saw that the angel of the Lord was standing in the path. Balaam bowed to the ground and heard the Lord ask,

Why have you struck your donkey these three times?

The Lord explained, “I have come out as an adversary, because your way was contrary to Me. But the donkey saw me and turned aside from me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, I would surely have killed you just now, and let her live.” (Numbers 22:32-33)

Balaam recognized his sin and explained that he didn’t realize that it was the Lord standing in the path and opposing him. Balaam told the Lord he would turn back if the Lord wanted him to; however, the Lord instructed him to continue, but speak only what the Lord told him to speak.

Balaam desired to travel the path even though God had told him not to the first time he asked. After Balaam sought God for a different answer, God allowed him to go.

It might seem odd that God gave permission to Balaam to go with the men and then directly oppose him, but God explained to him that “your way was contrary to Me.” (Numbers 22:32). Again, we encounter the Hebrew word “derek” for way, which suggests not only the path, but also includes the destination.

God does not wish for His children to travel a path of destruction, which will lead us to pain. If we insist on going our own way and disobeying God, He will allow us to travel that path. God will give us over to the things we persistently seek (Romans 1:24), but we will find ourselves in opposition to God.

Why did Balaam strike his donkey? Because he thought his donkey was being disobedient, when it was the Lord who opposed him. Why do we lash out at others or feel anger about our circumstances? It may be because we are not recognizing God’s hand in our lives steering us to a safe path.

Is there anyone or anything in your life that is not working according to your desires? Are you facing roadblocks or frustrations? Take some time to check in with the Lord and make sure you are walking according to His desires. Even if you are not being disobedient, God will use circumstances to guide us along a good path. As frustrating as events in our lives may be, we can trust that God is working towards what is best.

Wisdom speaks out in Proverbs 4:11, “I have directed you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in upright paths.”

When the king of Moab saw the Israelites set up camp in the plains of Moab, he was alarmed because he had seen for himself how the Amorite people had fallen before the Israelites. Even if Israel did not war against Moab, the king still had things to be concerned about. Israel was a large nation, not only of people, but also of all their possessions and their livestock. The king of Moab was afraid that the nation of Israel would use up all the resources around Moab, leaving none for his people and their livestock.

This would have been a great time for the king of Moab to ask questions to God: Will You provide for and support all of us on this land? What is your will? What is the way to make this work for all of us? Instead, he sent for Balaam.

Balaam had a reputation for getting results. People that Balaam blessed experienced blessings and those he cursed, were cursed. The king of Moab sent messengers and money to Balaam with the request that he curse the Israelites.

Rather than taking the job immediately, Balaam did a very wise thing: he consulted his god. But Balaam’s god wasn’t just any god, it was the Lord (Numbers 22:8). Balaam had a reputation for getting results because he wasn’t the one doing the work; he was listening to the Lord who did the work.

Balaam left the messengers and took the night to seek God’s council. God asked him this question,

Who are these men with you?

Balaam explained the situation, and God told him not to go with the men. So the next morning, Balaam explained that the Lord would not allow him to perform the curse the king of Moab requested. He declined the offer and sent the men back to the king of Moab.

The king would not be easily dissuaded and he sent important leaders to Balaam to beg him to curse Israel. They offered honor and the king’s promise to do anything Balaam asked. Balaam refused and explained that he could not do anything contrary to God’s will, but instead of sending the men away he told them he would check again with the Lord.

The king and of Moab was not concerned with obeying God nor did he even seek God’s council for a solution. He was looking for answers from his own limited imagination and sought to curse Israel. In Genesis 12, God had promised to bless those who blessed Abraham’s descendents and curse those who cursed them. By seeking to curse Israel, it is evident that Moab was living contrary to God’s will.

It is at this moment that Balaam stumbled. It is ok to check in with God from time to time to make sure we are living according to His will, but when He has clearly told us what His will is, we should continue to obey it and not be tempted out of it.

This is a perfect example of Psalm 1:1:

“How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!”

The nation of Moab sought what was contrary to God and thus would have fit into the category of wicked, sinners, and scoffers described in the verse above. Instead of turning them away, Balaam once again welcomed the Moabite messengers into his home. The first time is understandable, but to do it again was a mistake.

Psalm 1:1 speaks of a progression of walking, standing and sitting with those in opposition to God. The phrase “stand in the path of sinners” includes a word we have studied before, derek, translated path; remember, it is not simply indicative of a road or path, it includes the destination. When we travel with sinners, we are heading to the same destination. We may be Believers who are secure in the Lord, but if we follow the ways of unbelievers, we will head towards trouble – and often arrive!

God’s question to Balaam is a good question for us to answer: Who are these men with you?

Who are the people in your life with the most influence over you? Are they believers who live according to the Bible? Would you be pleased to talk to God about those you associate with and the things you do together? Would you feel conviction?

We are called to live in the world, but not to be of the world. We all have contact with people who live contrary to God, and that is not a sin. Jesus had contact with many people, some believers and some not. The difference is with whom we walk, stand and sit, those who are closest to us and influence us the most.

Take a moment to think about the people in your life and answer God’s question, “Who are these people with you?”

How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who are grumbling against Me?

Technically, God could have made a great nation through Moses without breaking any of His promises to Abraham. As we know, God didn’t do that. Moses interceded for the people, not because they were wonderful people, but because other nations in the land had seen God’s work and might reason that He could not take the Israelites into the land as promised. Moses’ first concern was God’s glory because he knew the Lord as One who is slow to anger and forgiving, but still a God of discipline.

The Lord relented and did not wipe out all of the people. Instead He decided to wait for the next generation to come and they would inherit the land God had promised. God stated,

“Your children, however, whom you said would become a prey–I will bring them in, and they will know the land which you have rejected.”

The Israelites imagined that God brought them out of Egypt to allow them to be conquered. They assumed their wives and children would become plunder and that it would be better to return to Egypt (Numbers 14:3). But God made a promise that the future would be the opposite of what the people fearfully predicted. Only God knows the future. Whatever circumstances we see today, the future may be completely different. We cannot know, but God sees the road ahead and we can trust Him.

Like a child who suddenly becomes amenable after the threat of impending discipline, the people thought that they could gain God’s promises by going into the land. But as the saying goes, “Delayed obedience is not obedience.” When the Israelites tried to move into the land, they did so without God and the people of the land defeated them. It is no use trying to obey God when God is not present.

The Israelites complained constantly and they continued to sin in other ways after this incident. The specific group in this story was replaced by another generation, but we must still ask: How long would God deal with the Israelites?

Answer: As long as there is an intercessor. When God told Moses He would abolish the people and begin again with Moses, Moses interceded for the people by reminding God that the rest of the world would see it and misunderstand God’s character. God knew this, but He listened to Moses to give us a picture of the intercessor to come, Jesus Christ.

The world has watched these last few thousand years and seen amazing occurrences with the nation of Israel. The Israelites eventually moved into the land God promised them, set up kings, and began to follow other Gods. Despite God’s warnings, they continued to follow pagan practices and God disciplined them by dispersing them to all parts of the earth and giving their land to conquering nations. God promised to bring the Israelites back to their land and in 1948 Israel was declared a nation once more. Has that ever happened before with any nation?  No. The nation of Israel is unique. God’s hand has not let go of Israel and His promises to them still stand, not because they are faithful, but because He is faithful.

Sometimes when we disobey God, we ask ourselves how long He will put up with us. Just as His promises to the people of Israel still stand, so do His promises to us. He has promised to always be with those who believe in Him, in His Son Jesus Christ.

Just as Moses was an intercessor to the nation of Israel, so Jesus Christ is an intercessor for those who believe in Him. He keeps us, not because we are faithful, but because He is. Hebrews 7:25 explains,

“Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

We looked at God’s former question, “How long will this people spurn Me?” and concluded that people spurn God whenever they focus on fears or circumstances rather than trusting God. The answer to the next question reveals to us why people focus on obstacles rather than on God.

The Israelites’ fear kept them from moving into the land that God told them they would have. Immediately after God asked, “How long will this people spurn Me?” He asked this question:

And how long will they not believe in Me, despite all the signs which I have performed in their midst?

Psalm 78 contains a summary of God’s signs and works in bringing the people of Israel out of slavery in Egypt. Verses 40-42 are particularly applicable:

“How often they rebelled against Him in the wilderness and grieved Him in the desert! Again and again they tempted God, and pained the Holy One of Israel. They did not remember His power, the day when He redeemed them from the adversary.”

Can you see what caused the Israelites to rebel against God? They “did not remember His power” and the works He had done. The remainder of the Psalm lists God’s works towards Israel.

By the time the Lord asked this question, He had already performed a great many signs that the Israelites would have witnessed firsthand:

• Signs given to Moses (his staff turned into a snake)
• The plagues (blood, frogs, gnats, flies, livestock, boils, hail, locusts, darkness)
• The Passover when the firstborn sons of those who were disobedient died
• The crossing of the Red Sea
• The waters sweetened at Marah (Exodus 15)
• Manna and quail provided
• Water from the rock (Exodus 17)
• Defeat of the Amalekites (Exodus 17)
• The giving of the Ten Commandments
• The Lord’s glory covering the Tent of Meeting
• The leading of the people by the cloud pillar and the fire

Despite all these things that the people had witnessed with their own senses, they rejected the Lord. Why? Because they didn’t remember these things.

Memory is selective. We must choose to hang on to certain memories or they will fade away. Despite how we may feel about our abilities to remember things, we still have a choice of what we remember. When we start forgetting the works God has done in our lives we become vulnerable to our fears.

Look back on your life and list the works God has done, His provision, His healing and His presence. Take time to notice His creation: the beauty of the skies and the miracle of growth. When we remember God’s power in the past, we are encouraged in the present and can face each day with confidence that God is lovingly watching over us.

Joshua and Caleb, two of the twelve, encouraged the Israelites to obey God and take the land. They believed that God’s will would triumph no matter how powerful their enemies appeared. However, the people of Israel agreed with the other ten spies. Majority ruled.

The Israelites rebelled against Moses and Aaron. They complained, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become plunder; would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?”

In their minds, they already knew the outcome. They allowed their fears to feed their imaginations, and in turn their imaginations fed their fears. They talked amongst themselves about finding a leader to take them back to Egypt.

Caleb and Joshua spoke up and encouraged the people not to disobey the Lord, but to trust that He would lead them into the land. The peoples’ response was talk of stoning them.

Then the Lord’s glory appeared at the Tent of Meeting. God asked…

How long will this people spurn Me?

The word “spurn” is indicative of contempt, scorn and rejection. The people were rejecting God yet again and wanted to go back to slavery in Egypt. The Israelites were afraid of the people in the land and rather than trusting God, who had provided for their welfare thus far, they chose to believe their fears.

I must admit that I have done the same thing. The last few months have been overwhelmingly eventful for me. In June, a drug user stole my car while I slept at my grandmother’s side in a hospice. The man came into the room and stole my purse with my car keys. Later that week, my grandmother passed away as I held her hand. Not long after that, I was driving and hit a piece of broken tire on an interstate when I went to change lanes. The back portion of my car was partially pulled away. Although it was an easy and cost free fix, I continued to feel anxiety every time I changed lanes.

Fear and anxiety can distract us from trusting in God. If we allow our fears to populate our imaginations, we can become immobile. We must make the choice not to allow fear to captivate us. When we become overly fearful or superstitious, we are entertaining ideas that did not originate from God. We always have a choice: We can believe God and trust that He will work out His will in our lives, or we can believe anything else.

God’s question about the Israelites is a good question for us. How long would the Israelites reject God? We can look back through history and see multiple times that the Israelites disregarded both God’s instructions and His promises. It was in their nature to go their own way. It is in all of our natures to go our own way.

How long will we reject God? As long as we focus on anything else that is easier to believe or more appealing to believe. Whether it is a person, a task, or a circumstance, there are things in this world that can cause us to be anxious. Every time we are confronted with an overwhelming obstacle, we make the choice to trust God or reject God. If we become anxious or negatively imaginative, we are not trusting God, we are spurning God.

If you feel fear or anxiety, think upon these Scriptures:

• “The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts in You.” Isaiah 26:3
• “Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us.” Psalm 62:8
• “The fear of man brings a snare, But he who trusts in the Lord will be exalted.” Proverbs 29:25