Numbers 13:11-15: a reflection

This passage lists the twelve spies sent to scout the promised land, one from each tribe. They would all go into the same land, see the same things, face the same facts; and yet, as the story goes on to show, they would respond very differently. Ten would come back seeing only giants and impossibility, gripped by fear; two would see the same land and the same giants, but see also God, and respond with faith. The same facts, seen through faith or through fear, led to opposite conclusions.

Notice that the same twelve, sent to the same land, would respond in opposite ways. They saw the same things, the same fruitful land, the same fortified cities, the same giants. But ten saw through the eyes of fear, and concluded it was impossible; two saw through the eyes of faith, and concluded that God would give them the land. The difference was not in the facts, which were the same for all, but in whether they saw them through faith or through fear. The same circumstances led to opposite conclusions, depending on faith or fear.

That is worth taking to heart, for we too face circumstances that can be seen through faith or through fear. The same situation, the same difficulty, the same obstacle, can be seen through the eyes of fear, which sees only the giants and concludes it is impossible; or through the eyes of faith, which sees the giants but sees also God, and concludes that he is able. The difference is not in the facts, but in whether we see them through faith or fear. When you face a daunting situation, do not see it only through the eyes of fear, which sees only the giants and despairs; see it through the eyes of faith, which sees the giants but sees also God, and trusts that he is able. The ten saw giants and despaired; the two saw God and believed. See your circumstances through faith, not fear, remembering God as well as the giants, that you may not be gripped by fear like the ten, but trust God like the two, who saw the same land but saw it through faith.