VICTORY IN THE WILDERNESS III

Text: Num. 21:1-9

Verses 4-5 reveal that a journey in the wilderness is not an easy ride. The children of Israel got discouraged as they journeyed and they murmured against God and against Moses. Their mouths began to confess negative things towards God and toward his servant, Moses, who was raised to guide them. How easily we forget the mercies of God! Mind your confessions especially in the time of difficulties. May you not use your mouth to sow an evil seed that will bring an evil harvest in the name of Jesus. There is a general belief that the only thing you sow is money, no, it is not so. The easiest thing you can sow is your word, your confession. Your word is a seed.

If you don’t want to see it, don’t say it! Prov. 18:21 says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” What you sow is what you harvest. As long as the earth remains, seed time and harvest shall not cease. Once the enemy brings you to the point of discouragement, keep your mouth shut. Make a deliberate attempt to speak the right thing; speak right, speak life, speak victory, speak encouragement, speak the word of God. Go out of your way to praise God and get yourself out of the pit.

Determine that you are not going to be buried in the valley. When faced with certain kinds of challenges, your attitude determines the kind of spirits that hover around you. You might be surprised to know that the attitudes of some people actually repel the blessings of God. There are lots of terrible spirits in the valley. Get out of the valley! Zech. 9:11 says, “As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water.”

Verse 5 – the children of Israel murmured and complained about the manna which God sent to them. In any way that you have ever trivialized the mercies of God, may God have mercy on you and forgive you in the name of Jesus. May you not trivialize the goodness, grace, favour and the benevolence of God again in the name of Jesus. May you not murmur, may you not grumble, may you not complain in the name of Jesus. In the face of challenges, may God grant you the right attitude in the name of Jesus. May you be full of praise in the face of any challenge in the name of Jesus. Learn to raise an altar of prophetic praise whenever challenges come. Praise is the highest form of prayer. When you praise, angels are at your beck and call but when you grumble or make the wrong confession, demons will respond. When you speak the word of God, angels will say a resounding ‘amen’. The choice is yours.

Verses 6-7 – God sent fiery serpents to bite the people of Israel and this led to the death of many of them. When the people realized their mistake, they repented and called out to Moses to pray to God on their behalf. Moses was a great leader. This is one of the most painful aspects of ministry. In spite of being misunderstood, castigated, as a man of God, you should pray when such people come back in repentance because a servant of God must not strive. That was where Moses found himself. Moses was a wonderful leader. It is not very easy to lead elders who sometimes behave like babies. Moses prayed for them revealing the heart of a shepherd. A shepherd does not kill the flock, rather, he guides, nourishes, prays for the flock, although he can rebuke the flock, he can use the rod on them to re-direct them whenever the need arises.

PRAYER

• Worship God with all your heart.
• Thank Him for His generous provisions for our well-being here and here after.
• Ask Him to always guide you to make right confessions even in the face of challenges.

TO BE CONTINUED…………