Thursday, May 22, 2014

By: Brandon Bilbo

Magnify What?

Psalm 34:3 O magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together.

I can remember visiting my childhood elementary school as an adult thinking, "Wow, this place is SO much tinier than I remember." From a child's perspective, those halls were never ending, the teachers were like giants, and the auditorium was the size of a Broadway stage.

It's amazing how different things look based on our PERSPECTIVE.

In Numbers 13, Moses had sent out 12 spies into Canaan, the neighboring land, in hopes to inhabit it. Up until this point, Moses and the Children of Israel had been wandering in the desert, but the land of Canaan was very lush.

The Bible says it was "flowing with milk and honey." The grapes were so large that one cluster had to be carried back by two men!

Joshua and Caleb, two of the spies, came back with a good report saying that they were "more than able" to take over the land.

However, the remaining 10 spies had a different report. In Numbers 13:33 they said, "We even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak. Next to them we felt like grasshoppers, and that's what they thought, too!"

The spies came back with TWO very different perspectives. Although Joshua and Caleb felt like they could conquer, they were in the minority. Sadly, most people form their opinions based upon what is seen in the natural just as the ten spies did. All they could FOCUS on were their insecurities, problems, current conditions...

Whatever you focus on is what will ultimately be MAGNIFIED. Joshua and Caleb focused on God's faithfulness and their strength in Him. Consequently, Joshua and Caleb were the only two men from that doubting generation to enter the Promise Land.

I challenge you to do as today's verse encourages, "MAGNIFY the Lord." You see, when you magnify the Lord, He does not get any larger. He simply gets larger in YOUR sight. With that PERSPECTIVE, you can defeat anything!

Dear Lord, Help me to always have a God-sized focus and perspective! I know that You can do ALL things.

I thank You Jesus for dying for me. I believe that You are Lord and that God raised You from the grave so that I can have eternal life.

Reflection: Have I been magnifying my problem or my God?