Chapter 15
What is it You’re Looking For?
There was a time in my life that I expected the worst. It was so familiar to me that I didn’t even know that it was my mindset. If someone would have told me I had a negative mindset, I would have denied it. I honestly didn’t see it in myself.
I think it developed in my childhood, from circumstances and pain that I lived through. If a person doesn’t have someone guiding them through tough events, and helping them see truth instead of what seems true, then a false negative mindset can be the end result.
Let’s take a look at some Biblical examples of people who had a similar problem.
We have looked, several times, at the Children of Israel and what they encountered when the Lord wanted to lead them into the promise land. Numbers chapter 13 tells us that Moses sent twelve spies, one from each tribe, to check out the land of Canaan. They were told to observe the people, the land, the crops and bring back a report.
Verse 25 tells us that they returned, came to Moses, Aaron and all of Israel and began to describe what they saw. They brought back a cluster of grapes, which was so large that it hung between two poles and they said it was a land that flowed with milk and honey; good qualities.
But then they began to mention all of the obstacles. The people who live there are strong and the cities are fortified and very large. The descendants of Anak are there. “We are not able to go up against the people, they are too strong for us”.
Then it gets worse… “We also saw the Nephilim (they were giants) and we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight”. (Emphasis mine)
Then verse 30 – 31 says, “Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “We should by all means go up and take possession of it, for we shall surely overcome it.” But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are too strong for us.”
What do you think brought on their defeatist attitude? Even though they all saw the same thing, at the same time, how are they divided between the ten who saw a negative outcome versus Caleb and Joshua, who did not?

Elisha and his servant
2 Kings 6 brings us another example. The Arameans were at war with Israel. The king of Aram was angry because he knew someone was giving Israel’s king inside, confidential information. The Aramean king was informed that Elisha, the prophet, was telling the king of Israel the secrets that the enemy nation spoke in their bedrooms (verse 12). So basically, he commanded them to go capture Elisha, the one telling their secrets to the king.
Elisha and his servant discovered that they were surrounded by horses and chariots from the Aramean army. Verse 15 tells us that the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do”? And Elisha said, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them. Then Elisha prayed and said, ‘O Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.’ And the Lord opened the servant’s eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”
What is the difference between Elisha and his servant’s perspective? How can they be in the same circumstance but perceive such a different outcome?

Multiplying the loaves and fishes
Or, what about the time when Jesus told His disciples to feed the crowd that has followed them?
Luke 9 tells us that a multitude of people had followed Jesus and His disciples out into the countryside because He had been teaching them and healing the sick. Verse 12 says when the day began to decline, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodging and get something to eat, for here we are in a desolate place.”
But Jesus said to them, “You give them something to eat!”. Verse 13 says that their reply was “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless perhaps we go and buy food for all these people.”
Might I point out that they had just seen miracles, as verse 11 says Jesus was teaching and healing the sick. Luke 8, the chapter before, tells how Jesus rebuked the storm as they were traveling across to the other side of the lake (vs.22-25) and asked them, “Where is your faith?” Then He delivered the man from demons (vs. 27-38). Then He heals the woman with the issue of blood (vs.43-48) and that’s on the way to raising Jairus’ daughter from the dead. ALL of this happened BEFORE He asked them to feed the multitudes.
After seeing all of these miracles, why did they think with their reasoning instead of by faith? Why did they perceive Jesus’ request as something to be fulfilled physically instead of through Him miraculously?
As I pondered all of this, trying to get a handle on why we have a tendency to see all of life’s issues so negatively, I ran across verses like this:

The thunder of the Lord
“Then the sons of Israel said to Samuel, ‘Do not cease to cry to the Lord our God for us, that He may save us from the hand of the Philistines,’ And Samuel took a suckling lamb and offered it for a whole burnt offering to the Lord; and Samuel cried to the Lord for Israel and the Lord answered him. Now Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, and the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel. But the Lord thundered with a great thunder on that day against the Philistines and confused them, so that they were routed before Israel.” (1 Samuel 7:8-10 NASB emphasis mine)
Did you notice what happened here? As Samuel was offering the sacrifice, God thundered with a great thunder against the Philistines. This was supernatural, divine intervention.

Pharaoh and the Red Sea
Let’s look at another Biblical example from Exodus 14. When the king of Egypt was told that the children of Israel had fled, Pharaoh and his servants had a change of heart toward the people, and they said, “What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?” (vs 5) Then the Egyptians chased after them with all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, his horsemen and his army and they overtook them camping by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon. (vs 9)
Then they (the children of Israel) said to Moses, “Is it because there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you dealt with us in this way, bringing us out of Egypt?” (vs 11). But Moses said to the people, “Do not fear! Stand by and see the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. (vs 13)
And the angel of God, who had been going before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them. So, it came between the camp of Egypt and the camp of Israel, and there was the cloud along with the darkness, yet it gave light at night. Thus, the one did not come near the other all night. (vs 19-20 emphasis mine)
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and the Lord swept the sea back by a strong east wind all night, and turned the sea into dry land, so the waters were divided. And the sons of Israel went through the midst of the sea on the dry land, and the waters were like a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. Then the Egyptians took up the pursuit, and all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots and his horsemen went in after them into the midst of the sea.
And it came about at the morning watch, that the Lord looked down on the army of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and cloud and brought the army of the Egyptians into confusion. And He caused their chariot wheels to swerve, and He made them drive with difficulty, so the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from Israel, for the Lord is fighting for them against the Egyptians.” (vs 21-25)
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may come back over the Egyptians, over their chariots and their horsemen.” So, Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal state at daybreak, while the Egyptians were fleeing right into it; then the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. And the waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen, even Pharaoh’s entire army that had gone into the sea after them; not even one of them remained. (vs 26-28)
Did you catch this? God divinely intervened in each of these examples. Now in the case with Moses, he obeyed the directives of the Lord by stretching his hand out over the water, but God moved on their behalf, both the evening before by placing a wall between Israel and the Egyptians, and again in the water by making it dry land for Israel to cross and then bringing the water back over the Egyptians.
I’d like to propose that God has not changed. He is still the same God, with the same heart for us now as He had then. Now, in the case of Moses and the children of Israel, Moses was looking for God’s help while Israel was seeing with fear and negativity. In the first example, the people came to Samuel asking him to petition God on their behalf.
In both examples, someone had an expectation to see God move, and I personally believe that is an important point.

Taking this question to heart
Could it be that we get what we are looking for? Could it be that we bind and loose situations around us based on our faith and expectations?
Hebrews 3:7-19 talks about the children of Israel and their time in the wilderness. “Do not harden your hearts as when they provoked Me, as in the day of trial in the wilderness, where your fathers tried Me by testing Me and saw My works for forty years” (vs 7-8), “Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God” (vs 12), “Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses? And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient? So, we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.” (Vs 15-17 emphasis mine)
In Deuteronomy 1:26-33, Moses is talking to the children of Israel. He says, “Do not be shocked, nor fear them. The Lord your God who goes before you will Himself fight on your behalf, just as He did for you in Egypt before your eyes, and in the wilderness where you saw how the Lord your God carried you, just as a man carries his son, in all the way which you have walked until you came to this place. But for all this, you did not trust the Lord your God, who goes before you on your way, to seek out a place for you to encamp, in fire by night and cloud by day, to show you the way in which you should go” (emphasis mine).
So, what is it God was looking for from them as He led them out of Egypt and into the promise land that He had told them that He had for them?
I believe there are several things that we should look at. Let’s take a look at faith, hope and trust.

Faith
Hebrews 11:1 says “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
Romans 5:2 references that “we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.”
Hope
Hebrews 6:17-19 “In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath; so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast…”. (emphasis mine)
Romans 4:18 says, “In hope against hope he (Abraham) believed, so that he might become a father of many nations according to that which had been spoken, ‘So shall your descendants be’”.
1 Timothy 1:1 “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus according to the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ Jesus, who is our hope.”
Trust
Psalms 84, the entire chapter, is amazing, but I’ll pull out a few verses: Verse 5 “Blessed is the man whose strength is in You” verse 11 “For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord will give grace and glory; No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.
O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man who trusts in You!” (NKJV emphasis mine)
Proverbs 3:5-7a “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes…” NKJV
Psalms 118:8-9 “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.” NKJV
Faith, hope and trust
Let’s dig a little deeper into the above verses to get a better visual of what is being said.
The word “faith” in the Greek (new testament) means “persuasion, credence, moral conviction and goes back to the root word “convinced”; And in Hebrews 3:19, when it mentions that Israel was not able to enter in because of their unbelief, the word “unbelief” literally means, when taken back to the root “not convinced”. (emphasis mine) Not convinced is much more revelatory than unbelief isn’t it?
And hope…Romans 8:25 says, “But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for It.” (NASB)
What is Biblical hope? Is it, “I sure hope everything turns out ok… (insert whiny voice)” NO! How we even use the word hope in conversations like that is beyond me, (although that used to be my mentality and behavior). That kind of talk is hopelessness and fear talking, far away from the hope mentioned here.
The word hope in the verse above, in the Greek, means to anticipate with pleasure, expectation.
Trust was a huge eye opener for me. The word trust in the above verses literally means “to hie for refuge”. The word hie means to hasten or run quickly to. Can you get a mental picture of this? Imagine a small child who gets scared about something or feels uneasy in a certain environment. They will run quickly to a parent to feel secure again. Scripture says we’re supposed to be child-like, so this is exactly what we’re supposed to do too.
To help us understand better how the children of Israel ended up in unbelief, and to also take an assessment of our familiar patterns, let’s go back to the book of Exodus. I found this an extremely helpful study.

Looking back
1.The Red Sea Exodus 14:10-12 And as Pharaoh drew near, the sons of Israel looked, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they became very frightened; so, the sons of Israel cried out to the Lord. Then they said to Moses, “Is it because there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you dealt with us in this way, bringing us out of Egypt? Is this not the word that we spoke to you in Egypt, saying, “Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness”.
What schemes of the enemy do you see here? I saw: fear, unbelief (not convinced), self-pity, accusations, eyes focused on the circumstances and not on the Lord, sarcasm (no graves in Egypt that you have taken us to die in the wilderness,) not remembering God’s past faithfulness (I mean, He had already done so many miracles during the plagues in Egypt; and the Passover blood? That one literally saved the firstborn in each household that night.)
What Moses did: vs 13-14 “But Moses said to the people, “Do not fear! Stand by and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent”.
What God did: vs 19-20 “And the angel of God, who had been going before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them. So, it came between the camp of Egypt and the camp of Israel; and there was the cloud along with the darkness, yet It gave light at night. Thus, the one did not come near the other all night”.
And then… vs 21-29 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord swept the sea back by a strong east wind all night and turned the sea into dry land, so the waters were divided. The sons of Israel went through the midst of the sea on the dry land, and the waters were like a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. Then the Egyptians took up the pursuit, and all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots and his horsemen went in after them into the midst of the sea. At the morning watch, the Lord looked down on the army of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and cloud and brought the army of the Egyptians into confusion. He caused their chariot wheels to swerve, and He made them drive with difficulty; so, the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from Israel, for the Lord is fighting for them against the Egyptians.” Then the Lord said to Moses. “Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may come back over the Egyptians, over their chariots and their horsemen.” So, Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal state at daybreak, while the Egyptians were fleeing right into it; then the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen, even Pharaoh’s entire army that had gone into the sea after them; not even one of them remained. But the sons of Israel walked on dry land through the midst of the sea, and the waters were like a wall to them on their right hand and on their left”.
2.Waters of Marah Exodus 15:22-24 “Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness and found no water. And when they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for they were bitter; therefore, it was named Marah. So, the people grumbled at Moses saying, “What shall we drink?”
What schemes of the enemy do you see here? I see: grumbling and complaining, unbelief (not convinced), looking to man for provisions instead of God, hopelessness, not remembering God’s past faithfulness (and His faithful deeds are piling up at this point).
What Moses did: vs 25a “Then he cried out to the Lord”
What God did: vs 25b-26 “and the Lord showed him a tree; and he threw it into the waters, and the waters became sweet. There He made for them a statute and regulation, and there He tested them. And He said, “If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the Lord, am your healer.”
3.Manna and quail Exodus 16:1-3 “Then they set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the sons of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure from the land of Egypt. The whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. The sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger”.
What schemes of the enemy do you see here? I see: fear, grumbling and complaining, accusation, influencing others in fear (the whole congregation was grumbling but you know it started with just one), Unbelief (not convinced), looking to man instead of God, not remembering God’s past faithfulness.
What God did: 4-15 “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” So Moses and Aaron said to all the sons of Israel, “At evening you will know that the Lord has brought you out of the land of Egypt; and in the morning you will see the glory of the Lord, for He hears your grumblings against the Lord; and what are we, that you grumble against us?”
Moses said, “This will happen when the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening, and bread to the full in the morning; for the Lord hears your grumblings which you grumble against Him. And what are we? Your grumblings are not against us but against the Lord.”
Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for He has heard your grumblings.’” It came about as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “I have heard the grumblings of the sons of Israel; speak to them, saying, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning, you shall be filled with bread; and you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’”
So, it came about at evening that the quails came up and covered the camp, and in the morning, there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the layer of dew evaporated, behold, on the surface of the wilderness there was a fine flake-like thing, fine as the frost on the ground. When the sons of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did now know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat.”
4.Obeying His ways Exodus 16:16,19 “This is what the Lord has commanded, ‘Gather of it every man as much as he should eat; you shall take an omer each, according to the number of persons each of you has in his tent.’” Vs 19 “Let no man leave any of it until morning.” But they did not listen to Moses, and some left part of it until morning, and it bred worms and became foul; and Moses was angry with them.”
What schemes of the enemy do you see: I see Disobedience, using their own reasoning instead of following orders (I know my own family’s needs best,) independence (I’ll do it my own way), lack of trust (that God knows my needs best), not remembering God’s past faithfulness
5.Sabbath Instructions Exodus 16:22-30 “Now on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one. When all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses, then he said to them, “This is what the Lord meant: Tomorrow is the Sabbath observance, a holy Sabbath to the Lord. Bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over put aside to be kept until morning.” So, they put it aside until morning, as Moses ordered, and it did not become foul nor was there any worm in it. Moses said, “Eat it today, for today is a Sabbath to the Lord; today you will not find it in the field. Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will be none.”
“It came about on the seventh day that some of the people went out to gather, but they found none. Then the Lord said to Moses, “How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My instructions? See, the Lord has given you the sabbath; therefore, He gives you bread for two days on the sixth day. Remain every man in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.” So, the people rested on the seventh day.”
What schemes of the enemy do you see here? (again) Disobedience, using their own reasoning instead of following orders (it was there every other day so why not today,) independence (I’ll do it my own way,) not taking God at His word, unbelief (not convinced), not remembering God’s past faithfulness
6.Water from the rock Exodus 17:1-3 “Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed by stages from the wilderness of Sin, according to the command of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore, the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water that we may drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” But the people thirsted there for water; and they grumbled against Moses and said, “Why now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”.”
What schemes of the enemy do you see here? I saw: Fear, grumbling and complaining, accusations, lack of trust, unbelief (not convinced), not remembering God’s past faithfulness.
What Moses did: vs 4 “So Moses cried out to the Lord saying, “What shall I do to this people? A little more and they will stone me”.”
What God did: vs 5-7 “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pass before the people and take with you some of the elders of Israel; and take in your hand your staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink”.”
7. Complaining about each other Numbers 12:1-2 “Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married (for he had married a Cushite woman); and they said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us as well?” And the Lord heard it.”
What schemes of the enemy do you see here? I saw: jealousy (has God only spoken to Moses?), judgment (of the Cushite woman), pride (sat themselves above the Cushites, Has He not spoken through us as well?), backbiting/gossip (sowing discord).
What God did: vs 5-10 “Then the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the doorway of the tent, and He called Aaron and Miriam. When they had both come forward, He said, “Hear now My words. If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord shall make Myself known to him in a vision. I shall speak with him in a dream. Not so, with My servant Moses. He is faithful in all My household. With him I speak mouth to mouth, even openly, and not in dark sayings, and he beholds the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant, against Moses?” So, the anger of the Lord burned against them and He departed. But when the cloud had withdrawn from over the tent, behold, Miriam was leprous, as white as snow. As Aaron turned toward Miriam, behold, she was leprous.”
What Moses did: vs 13 “And Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, “Oh God, heal her, I pray!”
Wow! Isn’t that impressing… I want to have this kind of trust in the Lord that I can have this response, even when wronged. He did not vindicate himself, or complain about his own siblings turning against him. He cried out in intercession for those who had spoken against him; And God did vindicate him. He said, “If her father had but spit in her face, would she not bear her shame for seven days? Let her be shut up for seven days outside the camp, and afterward she may be received again”. So, Miriam was shut up outside the camp for seven days, and the people did not move on until Miriam was received again.

Miriam’s sin affected them all
I find it interesting to note that Miriam’s sin affected everyone, not just Miriam. Everyone waited for her throughout that seven days and did not move on. I think we secretly feel like our sin issues are ours alone, but truthfully, our sin affects us all. We may not see its affects in others, but I believe, in the Spirit, we are impacting each other.
We could go on and on, there are so many situations they faced in the wilderness. But what I discovered while I was doing this was the enemies that they were being influenced with are the same ones we face today. The ways of the enemy have not changed in all of these years. I saw that fear, pride, independence and everything else they faced are situations I have had to deal with, and may still from time to time.
Recognizing these things has helped me put a name on what I’m vulnerable to and recognize it easier. It gives a face to the schemes of the enemy so I can see it sooner and not find myself lying flat on my back wondering how the rug of faith got swept out from under my feet yet again.
We need to take a look at what our minds lean towards. Is it hope in God for His leading as we look for Him moving on our behalf? Is it a doomsday feeling that any minute the bottoms going to fall out because we are influenced by fear? Is it somewhere in between with our minds flip-flopping back and forth like a pin ball?
I have a question for you…what is it you’re looking for? What kind of result are you expecting? If it’s not a good outcome, then I wonder if some tweaking needs to be done, some mind renewal based on truth.

What about the armor?
1 Thessalonians 5:8 is a good verse to look at as well. “But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. Let’s look a little deeper at this.
When looking at the armor mentioned in this verse it talks about a breastplate and a helmet. The breastplate covers and protects your heart and emotions and a helmet protects your head and your mind. There is protection for both.
The word faith in the Greek means persuasion and comes from the root word “to convince”. He provides a breastplate of faith.
Hope, as was stated above means to anticipate with pleasure, expectation. He provides a helmet of the hope of salvation.
When I take a look at the meanings of these two words, so much stands out to me. Are we convinced in our faith? It’s easy to say we have faith, or to look at verses that talk about unbelief and not think this could apply to me. But faith means to be convinced, and the Greek word for unbelief means “not convinced”. It can’t be much clearer than that. Do we have an expectancy of hope?
If I am not convinced that God is a good Father and has good in store for me, then I might whine the statement above, “I sure hope everything turns out ok…”; but if I am convinced of the goodness of God and the verse that says He is looking for those to support whose hearts are fully His, then I wait expectantly for His divine help and intervention. When we are looking for God then we begin to see Him moving all around us. When unbelief clouds our spiritual vision, we don’t notice Him, we focus on the problem and fear keeps us consumed with worry and fighting off discouragement

A Better Way
King David wrote many Psalms about refocusing himself on truth and not let the facts of his current circumstances present themselves as true.
Psalms 121:1-4 is a perfect example. “I will lift up my eyes to the hills; from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. (NKJV)
In verse one he asks himself a question; Where does my help come from? Verses 3 and 4 both say that He keeps us. Do you know what the word keep is describing? In the Hebrew it means, “to hedge about (as with thorns), ie, guard; to protect, preserve.
Imagine it… God, our heavenly Father, literally hedges around us (that is what about means, to encircle) as with thorns. If we really comprehended His active care for us, we would run to Him in every little circumstance, because we would know it’s in His heart to protect and care for us.
It’s when we don’t know that we allow way more than we ought because we don’t know His heart for us, or His intentions. Because we don’t know, we don’t catch the little foxes that ruin the vineyard that Song of Solomon references (2:15). Because of this, we might have a tendency to allow things to remain and grow into a bigger attack. This is not the Father’s heart for us, to fight and resist the enemy alone.
Psalm 3:3 says, “But thou O Lord, art a shield about me…”. There is that word “about” again, which means to encircle. And the word shield? It means “a protector, buckler, defense and comes from the root word (again) “to hedge about”.
Psalms 9:9-10 (words in (parenthesis) are the Hebrew meanings) says, “The Lord also will be a stronghold (a cliff or other lofty or inaccessible place, a refuge) for the oppressed (crushed, injured, afflicted). A stronghold (same as above) in times of trouble (tightness, affliction, anguish, narrow, from root to cramp, bind up, shut up, be in a strait (trouble) vex); And those who know (to ascertain by seeing) Thy name will put their trust (to hie for refuge) in Thee; For Thou, O Lord, hast not forsaken those who seek (to tread or frequent) Thee.
Did you see that? He will not forsake those who tread or frequently pursue Him. By faith we must begin to believe these truths. We must begin the process of renewing our minds and trading out facts that has seemed true from our past with what God’s word says.
If you’ll remember in an earlier chapter, I mentioned that we must not formulate doctrine based on our experience, but we must line up with the word of God. Don’t let past troubles or failures paint a different story over your present. Believe what God’s word says instead, in every instance.

Learning from the ways of David
David challenged his thoughts and the realm of his soul many times throughout scripture. Psalms 42:5 and again in 11 both say, “Why are you in despair, O my soul” And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance, and my God”
Then he would take it a step further. Psalms 25:4-5 says, “Make me know Thy ways, O Lord; teach me Thy paths. Lead me in Thy truth and teach me. For Thou art the God of my salvation; For Thee I wait all the day”.
David understood that he needed the wisdom, understanding and leading of the Father to make it possible to live this type of lifestyle, as do we. We can’t do this on our own. We can’t just learn some principles of the Kingdom then work them on our own. It’s all about relationship.
I Thessalonians 5:10 makes this clear. It says, “For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him (emphasis mine). This is key…we live together WITH Him…not for Him. For Him is working it on our own. With Him is, well…with Him. There’s a BIG difference in following concepts of truth on your own, and walking in close relationship with Him.

Kingdom Perspective
Living life this way; seeking to see circumstances from a heavenly perspective is a choice. We can look for God’s wisdom and provision, but it doesn’t come naturally. Human reasoning and our natural emotions do not lean this way. This is why we must lean into faith and renew our minds. So, again I ask, what is it you’re looking for? What kind of result are you expecting? The answer to this question is an indicator of what realm your faith is in. It’s either the realm of trust in God’s protection and provisions, or I fight a big devil and God may not be able or willing to help.

A Kingdom promise in the words of Jesus
John 16:23b says, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. Then verse 27, “for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.”
The word love in the Greek is the word phileo and means to be a friend to (fond of an individual) ie have affection for. We know that God agape’s us, but did you also know he phileo’s us? He has affection for us, He is fond of us…
Are we asking for His help? Or are we just making it through the day, pulling up our boot straps and trudging along; this is not His best for us, nor His will. He is waiting for us to say we can’t do it ourselves. He’s waiting for us to rely on Him and not on our own reasoning. He’s waiting for us to seek out relationship with Him and not just “work” the principles of the kingdom, independent of Him.
If you identify yourself in this and want to move from independence to relationship, and from fear-based perceptions to convinced faith, pray this prayer with me.

Father, I see that I have some changes to make. I have allowed fear to cloud my sight. I’ve allowed facts to paint an alternate picture over my present and what Your plan is. I’ve taken the truths of the kingdom and applied them as a prescription to my life instead of walking in relationship with you.
I repent, Lord, of my faithlessness, not being convinced of your loving intentions for me. I repent for thinking I have a plan that will work better than Yours. I repent for walking independent of you with your truths and not walking with You so You can reveal Your heart for me along with Your path for me.
I can’t do this on my own. I’ve tried and failed. I need You and I invite You in. As David prayed, please come and make me know Your ways, come teach me Your paths, come lead me in truth…I’m waiting for you, and in faith I know you will hear me and answer because You’ve just been waiting for me to ask, In Jesus precious name, Amen.