One in a Million: Journey to Your Promised Land

by Priscilla Shirer

You might be in the oasis of complacency if the enemy rarely hinders your progress in any noticeable way.

The radical believers whose relationships with God have most impacted me are those who are not satisfied with any oasis outside of Canaan no matter how refreshing and temporarily satisfying it may be. They are willing to be the one-in-a-million, to believe Him in ways that most would never dare to do.

Promised Land living. This is what it looks like. Not easy chairs. Not happy-go-lucky. No, it’s something far superior to that. Promised Land living is power, confidence, endurance, thankfulness. It’s spiritual fruit growing right at your fingertips. It’s boldness that can’t be shaken by anything, even when an earthquake is erupting all around you. No matter the noise level and magnitude. It’s forgiveness, freedom, full expectation. It’s strapping on the armor and daring any devil in hell to try defeating what God is accomplishing in you. Promised Land living is both loud and quiet, tough and tender; it’s everything you need it to be. It’s here. It’s now. And how! And wow! No comparison. No complaints. Please—no more complacency.

They had heard with their own ears the

assurances of God. They had seen and certainly tasted the cluster of fruit that more than verified, beyond their wildest imaginations, just how accurate God had been when He had described the land to them. They had sat on the proverbial pew at Sinai, basking in His glory, hearing His voice, seeing His power descend from on high, just as He does when we sit in our churches Sunday after Sunday. And yet . . . Nevertheless. This was the word that turned a forty-day excursion into a forty-year, self-imposed death sentence. The people saw, but they chose not to believe. Let’s just call it what it is. They chose the oasis of complacency. They chose less than God’s best. They chose to concede defeat. They chose wrong.

Maybe what you and I need right now to change this way of thinking—to kick-start our plans for going to the Promised Land—is to pull out that cluster of proof that speaks volumes to the goodness of God. Firsthand things. Forgotten things. Even if your recent days have been filled with frustrations and disappointments, I still know you can look back and find evidence of God’s promises to you. Not one or two.

I don’t know what God has been doing in your heart throughout this book, particularly in this one chapter where I’ve intended to pull back the blinders on a shortchanged lifestyle decision that is so easy and natural to make and so hard to pull out of. There’s not one of us who hasn’t caved to complacency. We’ve all had our mail addressed to us in Kadesh-barnea before. But I just want to encourage you. You don’t have to stay there. Moving out is no easy matter, that’s for sure. But we’re all in this together, my friend. And there are people in your life who would love to come alongside and help you if you’d admit what needs repairing, if you’d be honest about what you’re lacking and serious about setting a new course for Canaan.

It’s worth any risk and time expense to put Kadesh-barnea behind you and out of your bloodstream. The fruits of God’s promises are waiting for you in Canaan, as well as—yes—probably the fight of your life. But it’s better than dying a slow death at a place that was never meant to be more than a rest stop. Complacency would love to see you stay. Your Lord is calling you away. Come out of Kadesh-barnea and live.

scent of sameness you hadn’t really noticed before but one that now seems terribly distasteful with the aromas of the Promised Land so surprisingly close.

I hope that being only a few steps away from abundant living has caused your heart to churn within you as the Spirit allures you to press ahead, to enter into a life overflowing with power and spiritual plenty.

Major losses take time to get over, especially when the thing you’ve lost is what has kept you going thus far and what you expected to keep you going until the end. It’s somewhat shocking to realize that the things you’ve been depending on to keep your spiritual life on course have been good enough up till now, but something new is going to be required if you want to keep moving forward.

The death of Israel’s hope wasn’t easy for ancient Israel. The death of your “Moses” won’t be easy either. But it’s a requirement for anyone wanting to step foot on Canaan’s soil.

when the Lord shows you that even some good things, some Moses things, must die in order for you to step foot on Canaan’s soil?

Maybe God is showing you that you’ve been placing too much confidence in another person to assist you in your journey.

He’ll upset the standard way we’ve been practicing our life and Christian faith, the things we’ve been subtly and secretly putting our trust in, the things that feel comfortable to us but don’t get us any closer to living in Canaan.

the loss of some of these long-held habits and comfort points—some of these “deaths” that need to occur—will hurt for a while. Their absence may even be felt longer than you expect. Nothing wrong with that. In the case of Israel, the death of Moses caused them to grieve for an extended period of time. Seven days just wasn’t quite adequate. But there came a time when enough was enough. “The days of weeping and mourning for Moses came to an end”

At a certain point you must make a deliberate

choice to move on, when you need to get beyond what you miss about the oasis and your time spent on...

There comes a time when the best advice anyone can give you is to just get over it. While each of us needs time to heal, we can’t allo...

sul...

But at some point mourning is no longer appropriate. We must move on. A new day is dawning. It always does when God is drawing us toward the Promised Land.

Deuteronomy 34:8—like

Joshua was the same age Moses was when, as a simple shepherd, he had heard God’s voice coming from a burning bush, calling him to lead the Hebrews out of slavery in Egypt. Remember how Moses responded to this commission? “What shall I say to them?” (Exod. 3:13). “What if they will not believe me or listen to what I say?” (4:1). “Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue” (4:10). Not exactly the kind of heroic heartbeat we were hoping for. Two men. Both called to lead God’s people. Both required to wage war. Both made capable by God to handle the tasks of their assignment. But the similarities between the two stops there because without excuse and without delay, “Joshua did as Moses told him.” His quick acceptance shows more than just a willingness to obey. It shows unwavering courage in the face of risky circumstances.

This is perhaps the primary characteristic

that distinguished Moses and Joshua. One was unsure of himself and of God’s ability while the other never questioned either. One was more concerned about who and what was against him while the other had confidence in the One who was for him. One sought to escape the duty of his calling because he felt incapable of fulfilling it, while the other faced it head-on despite his limited capability, trusting that God would take up the slack. Our first introduction to Joshua reveals a man who courageously engaged in the tasks he w...

In fact, one of the ways I determine His will for my life is like this: if discerning His will means making a decision between two options, and my only reason for being suspicious of one of the options is that I’m afraid of it, I know this is probably the choice He’s wanting me to make. If fear is the only reason I’m resistant to follow, I can usually assume the enemy is trying to keep me from doing what the Lord wants me to do. I’m learning that fear is a spirit given by the enemy to divert us away from God’s will.

Would I stay spiritually complacent, apathetic to God’s voice, or would I put my full trust in Him—not only trusting Him to take care of my journey but also to take care of my relationships

We’re not here to win popularity contests; we’re here to conquer Canaan. A lot of women who win Miss Wilderness pageants don’t realize they’ve settled for a crown that’s not worth having. One-in-a-millions are after a much bigger prize. And they realize they may have to forgo popularity to get it.

Obedience was his top priority. First thing on his list for the day. He acted immediately in response to God’s direction. I love the fact that the Scriptures are replete with the marvelous activity of God that occurred “early in the morning.” When Abraham obeyed God’s unthinkable request to take his son, the child of promise, up to Mount Moriah and sacrifice him to the Lord there, he immediately obeyed. He left out from home with Isaac “early in the morning” (Gen. 22:3) to do what God had shown him. During the Hebrews’ ordeal in Egypt, God instructed Moses to “rise early in the morning” and present himself before Pharaoh (Exod. 8:20), telling the pagan ruler to let these people go. When David left home for what would become his epic battle with Goliath of Gath, he “arose early in the morning” (1 Sam. 17:20) to meet up with Israel’s army. The women who initially discovered that Jesus had risen from the dead were able to be the first witnesses of His resurrection because they had come to the tomb “early in the morning” (Luke 24:22).

make obedience to His Word a priority on our to-do list and in every decision-making process. It’s a reminder not to procrastinate when God is calling but rather to obey first and let everything else take care of itself.

I don’t know what God is asking you to do right now—a change He’s telling you to make, a bold ministry idea He’s been stirring in your heart. But I know that if God is calling you to do it, He’s not sitting around waiting to hear all your excuses for putting this off, all your reasons for why you think He’s expecting too much of you here, why next month or next year would be much more convenient. What is God asking you to do? Are you doing it? Start. Today.

We must practice discerning the voice of God so that we’re only acting on things He’s really saying. Nothing is much more exhausting and discouraging than waving our spiritual courage around based on our own best guesses. You and I can’t just decide what we want God to do, choose to act on it, then get frustrated when He doesn’t respond. We must wait to hear Him, stay faithful to the principles of Scripture, and then follow His leading. This is what it means to walk by the Spirit.

God’s directions were far more reliable than man’s were. He wisely told the people why—“for you have not passed this way before” (Josh. 3:4). May as well stop wasting time and follow Someone who knows their way around these parts. “As for me and my house” (Josh. 24:15), Joshua was following his Lord.

wherever God goes, that’s where you are to go. But if God doesn’t go, then we aren’t going. Joshua didn’t say, “I’m the leader. Follow me.” He said, “God’s the leader. Follow Him.” If you and I are going to cross over and live in the abundance Christ died for us to possess, we must keep our eyes peeled for God’s presence and activity and then follow hard after Him. We must ask Him to heighten our awareness of Him, sharpening our spiritual sensitivity so that just as our five physical senses pick up on sights and sounds in the natural realm, our spiritual senses can pick up on God’s movement in the spiritual realm. God is moving, and when we recognize His activity around us, it’s an invitation for us to get on board with what He is doing.

not every good thing is a God thing, and nothing is worth doing if it’s not what God wants us to do.

he was instructing the people of Israel to start acting like they knew God was going to do something incredible. He told them to consecrate, purify, and set themselves apart today in anticipation of the miracle that God would perform tomorrow. It’s one thing to change the way you’re living after God parts the Jordan. It’s another to do it while the waves of your problem are still crashing around your feet as you stand on the shore.

It takes faith to look at a problem and begin living as though God is going to do something spectacular in the midst of it. It takes faith, knowing your personal, family, or community situation the way you do, to start walking in patient confidence that God hasn’t conceded defeat in your life. It takes faith to look at an obstacle that is deeper and meaner than any courage you can conjure up yet be absolutely assured that God’s power is more than enough to move it out of the way.

start acting as though God is already up to big things. Wonderful things. “Amazing things.” Instead of waiting to respond at a later, more convenient time, go ahead and begin your preboarding. “Consecrate” yourself by packing all your passions into a pure obedience toward God and His Word. And see how Canaan feels when God enables you to sink your sandals down into it.

From your current vantage point you may not be able to see how God is going to work out His purposes in your life, the ones that seem far away and impossible to detect. You’ve gotten your feet wet, but life just seems to roll on like it always has, oblivious to your prayers and the faith you’ve placed in God’s clear word to you. But be convinced that eventhough God may be working “a great distance” away, He is working. He has not forgotten His promises. He has not run into a snag that may prevent Him from following through. As you faithfully incorporate the new paradigm of Joshua’s leadership into your life, be assured that God will carry out the miraculous plans He has for you. And you will see them with your own eyes, just as the Hebrews did when the remaining waves, stripped of their energy source, emptied out before them like water down a storm drain.