Which network are you tuning in to?

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Which network are you tuning into?

The other day I, well my kids, were invited to a birthday party.

There I was in the warm sun. Enjoying my refreshing juice. Overlooking yards and yards of beautiful landscape surrounding ours host’s gorgeous home.

Other than the host, I didn’t know anyone at the party. So I was just too grateful when one of the guests came to sit with me.

We began talking. And… It didn’t take long for me to start complaining. And talking about the injustice of this. And the wrong of that.

When I realised what I was doing, I tried to turn the conversation into a positive direction… but too much negative had gushed out — it felt like trying to steer the Titanic from that iceberg- it was too big a ship to turn around as quickly as was needed.

I left the party rather disappointed in myself.

Why? Because 12 spies were sent into the Promised Land.

You remember the story right?

God delivers the Children of Israel out of Egypt. Miraculously.

Miracle after inexplicable miracle happens.

I mean if the stuff that happened in the desert happened today! Can you imagine!

Imagine, for instance, news agencies reporting on The Red Sea parting?

Picture this. A reporter- brown suit. British accent. While pointing at where the Sea had parted, saying: “Yes, yes. It happened right here. Eye witnesses say it happened so fast- as you can see the cell phone footage that was sent to us- The world is still reeling! Social media is on the verge of self-combusting with all the activity over this event. Some are saying it could be a hoax — but these images — the images we’re showing on the screen right now tell another story — one video posted online hit two million views in less than 24 hours — two million is also the number of people who are believed to have crossed over to the other side — as you can see in the images – the land was absolutely dry — nothing like this has ever happened before! We’ll be crossing over to my colleague shortly who is on the other side of this sea speaking with the people who crossed over! In the meantime scientists are saying…”

I mean can you imagine if the Red Sea parting had happened today! In our time! And had been caught on camera!

How about the bizarre weather bulletin reporting food falling out of the sky!

It was mind-blowing stuff that the Children of Israel experienced!

And yet. And yet after all that — when they get to the land God had promised them — they turned back. Into the desert. To wander. For 40 years!

This is one of the most tragic stories in the scriptures.

Today we’re told that the journey to The Promised Land should only have taken a couple of weeks or less! It took them 40 years!

Why? Because, essentially the children of Israel chose to listen to the wrong news.

12 spies were sent.

Two came back excited! Talking about: “WHOA! You should see this AMAZING land God’s given us! It’s truly flowing with milk and honey!”

Gigantic grapes
To show the people just how beyond imagination this place was they brought back grapes. Those grapes (from the Promised Land) were so gigantic they required two grown men to carry one bunch of grapes!

These two spies were ecstatic! They had arrived!

Not so for the other 10 spies. Because the other 10 said: “Yeah the grapes are pretty spectacular- but…”

And it was that ‘but’ that the people chose to listen to.

Not to their amazing God who had miraculously delivered them from slavery that had lasted over 400 years!

They didn’t want to listen to the God who had parted the Red Sea. Rained food from heaven. Shown them mercy over and over again. No. Their ears were closed to that. They chose instead to listen to the fear of the 10 spies.

Today. We can judge the Children of Israel all we want. I know I have.

How? We ask. Can anyone see God do all that and yet doubt?

I believe the greatest miracle that ever happened was Jesus dying on the cross. Nothing before or after even came close!

So for those of us that believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and have accepted that — we have opened ourselves up to, hands — down, the greatest miracle of all time! And yet — how many times do we walk away from the Promised Land. Because we listen to the wrong report?

It’s amazing how all 12 spies saw the same things. Yet there was a massive difference in how they saw.

God knew there were giants in the Promised Land. But He promised that land to the Children of Israel anyway.

The giants weren’t the problem — how the Children of Israel chose to see them was.

For me, in this season of my life-the Promised Land applies to two things: my personal life and the country in which I live, South Africa.

In my personal life God’s been challenging me on this.

It’s almost as though I feel Him asking me: “How do you see what you see? And how will you respond?”

We will never achieve, fully, what God has called us to do if we tune into the wrong network.

The fact is: God’s broadcasting one thing and the enemy is broadcasting something else.

God says: “Yes there are giants, but Greater is He that is in you!”

I used to believe my dreams would come true if only I believed really really hard. And prayed. And believed some more… No dream ever comes true like that. Because every promise has giants that must be overcome in order to possess what God has promised.

With regard to South Africa… Oh my! Where to begin!

While at that birthday party I saw how easy it is to move from faith to fear.

The giants will not prevail
I’m at the place in my heart where I’m honestly not too occupied with what news reports say. Neither am I hassled by what all the naysayers have to say because I’m seeing what God is doing in South Africa and I know and I know and I know that the giants will not prevail.

Greater is He that is in us!

And the only way we lose is if we perpetually dwell in the mode I was in at that party: moaning and groaning, complaining and hating — instead of getting excited about what God is doing in the Kingdom — getting actively involved and being the answers this country (and this world) needs!

Does this mean we ignore what’s happening around us and live in a bubble of delusion?

No. The giants in the Promised Land were very real.

The Children of Israel couldn’t have just moved in, eyes-shut and wished the giants away. It didn’t work like that for them. It surely does not work like that for us today.

So how do we win? How do we possess what’s rightfully ours?

One way to start is with our words. Instead of agreeing with what Andrew Wommack calls the ‘Ten Spies Network’ how about we agree with Jesus. How about we speak life where there’s death. How about we open our mouths toward the heavens and speak rain instead of drought. How about we speak prosperity instead of declaring doom and dread.

The problems we face are very real. But so is our God.

The “greater” power is not in a person. It is not in a political party. It is not in this minister or that minister. The “greater” power is in us — who are called according to His Purpose!

I’m excited to be part of what is God is doing! A part of that is this great honour to join Oom Andre, the founder and editor of this publication, Gateway News that exists to declare Jesus!

I dare say that as believers, the power in us is so great that we literally can determine the course of this nation!

I pray that we’d be tuned into Heaven’s network.

That we’d put His Kingdom first and truly understand that in whatever we’ve been called to do — we’re called to put His Kingdom first. We cannot do that listening to the 10 Spies.

I, for one, am pretty tired of the desert. How about You?