What is the next step
Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.” ~ Numbers 13:30
How often do you face a situation where God has given direction, yet the circumstances feel overwhelming and intimidating? This chapter speaks directly to believers today who are learning how to walk by faith instead of being ruled by fear. Today’s scripture reading tells the story of God sending leaders to explore the Promised Land, a place He had already promised them. The land was good, fruitful, and exactly as God said it was, yet fear rose when the people focused on obstacles instead of God’s word. Ten spies saw giants and felt defeated before the battle ever began, while Caleb and Joshua saw the same land and trusted the God Who promised it with confidence.
Here are three take aways from today’s passage:
1. What you focus on shapes what you believe.
The spies all saw the same land, but their conclusions were different because their focus was different. Some focused on the size of the giants, while others focused on the size of God.
Pay attention to what fills your thoughts when challenges arise. In current circumstances, this may look like limiting negative voices, choosing scripture over constant worry, and reminding yourself of past moments when God carried you through.
2. Fear spreads quickly, but faith can steady the room.
The fearful report discouraged the entire community, while Caleb’s faith filled response brought calm and clarity.
Choose words that build trust instead of panic. In everyday life, this may look like speaking hope in a tense family conversation, encouraging a coworker during uncertainty, or refusing to join conversations that magnify problems without faith.
3. Obedience requires trust before certainty.
God had already promised the land, yet the people wanted proof that felt safe. Caleb trusted God before the outcome was visible.
Move forward in obedience even when all details are not settled. In present circumstances, this can look like taking a step of faith toward what God has placed on your heart, continuing to serve faithfully when results feel slow, or trusting Him with decisions that stretch your comfort zone.
Just last week, God placed an opportunity before me to visit a friend early one morning before work. I wanted to go, but the timing was not what I had planned. I already had my day mapped out in my mind, starting with the morning hours. After a brief internal wrestling match with the Holy Spirit, I decided I would go see her after I finished working. I continued to pray for her throughout the day, but halfway through my work shift I felt completely depleted. I told the Lord it simply could not happen that day because I did not have the strength. As I was leaving work, I received a message that my friend was very sick that morning and was not even able to see anyone. Although she was doing much better by the afternoon, I realized there was no way I could have gone to see her that morning anyway. I immediately wondered why I had such a strong urge to go see her that morning when it wasn’t even a possibility to go. Then I realized that a simple call or text message (which would have been my first step if I had followed the Holy Spirit’s leading instead of debating with Him) would have immediately revealed that visiting was not possible and would have shifted how I prayed for her that day.
I know this situation does not compare to what the Israelites faced in the wilderness, but it taught me such a powerful lesson. Instead of saying no or not now, or arguing that it cannot be done when the Holy Spirit puts something on my heart, a better response would be “What is the next step to get there?” Then, when you know what that step is, ask for the grace, empowerment and desire to take that step. When we see the entire picture at once, it often feels overwhelming and impossible. But when we learn to ask God how to begin, He faithfully leads us step by step into the promises He has already given.
In my case, I could clearly sense His leading, yet the unknown details caused hesitation and fear that it wouldn’t work in my schedule. Instead of trusting what God had already prompted in my heart, I allowed my plans to take priority and missed out on the blessings and purpose the Holy Spirit was trying to lead me to. When I choose to take a faith step at His beckoning, doors open, confidence grows, and I witness God’s provision in ways I never expect. This experience reminded me that faith does not deny challenges, it simply refuses to let them be the loudest voice. All God was asking from me was to take the next faith step.
Today I want to encourage you to see your situation through the lens of God’s promises instead of the size of the obstacles before you. Do not let fear or uncertainty steal what God has already said belongs to you. When He puts something on your heart or leads you in a direction that feels overwhelming, don’t be afraid or worried that you can’t do that. Instead, ask Him for the next step, then move forward with trust and courage, even when the path feels unclear. The same God who promised the land goes before you, walks with you, and empowers you to step into everything He has prepared.
Top of Form
Bottom of Form
Today’s scripture reading: Numbers 13
1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them.”
3 So Moses sent them from the Wilderness of Paran according to the command of the Lord, all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel.
4 Now these were their names: from the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur;
5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori;
6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh;
7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph;
8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun;
9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu;
10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi;
11 from the tribe of Joseph, that is, from the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi;
12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli;
13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael;
14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi;
15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.
16 These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun, Joshua.
17 Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the South, and go up to the mountains,
18 and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many;
19 whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds;
20 whether the land is rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.
21 So they went up and spied out the land from the Wilderness of Zin as far as Rehob, near the entrance of Hamath.
22 And they went up through the South and came to Hebron; Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)
23 Then they came to the Valley of Eshcol, and there cut down a branch with one cluster of grapes; they carried it between two of them on a pole. They also brought some of the pomegranates and figs.
24 The place was called the Valley of Eshcol, because of the cluster which the men of Israel cut down there.
25 And they returned from spying out the land after forty days.
26 Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land.
27 Then they told him, and said: “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit.
28 Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there.
29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”
30 Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”
31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.”
32 And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature.
33 There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”
Journal:
- What situation in my life feels intimidating right now
- Where might fear be influencing my thoughts or decisions
- What has God already promised that I need to trust today
- How can I choose faith filled words and actions in my current circumstances
The Daily Dose 