Richer Faith As We Progress
MEMORY VERSE:
“Now then, just as the Lord promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years
since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the desert.
So here I am today, eighty-five years old! I am still as strong today as the day
Moses sent me out;
I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then.
Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day.
You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large
and fortified,
but, the Lord helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.”
Joshua 14: 10-12
INTRODUCTION
They say that as wine ages, the better it becomes. But to many of our more advanced brothers and sisters, this seems to be true only in the abstract: It is a reality that the body becomes worn and torn as the body ages; it is a reality that no matter how wise a senior has become, this is off-set by his new physical, social and financial limitations. But with Caleb, the story seems to be different.
I. Caleb remembered – he did not develop amnesia.
o Being embarrassed to rejoice over one’s past successes because of
one’s age is false pride.
o The past, well-lived or not, should be a constant source of both upliftment
and censure – as befits one’s present situation.
II. Caleb made full use of his time – he did not waste time on the “valley of humiliation”
o One’s physical, social and financial limitations are merely quagmires, not
graveyards.
o When one looks through glass, he sees other people’s needs and what he
can do; when one looks at a mirror, he sees only his needs, his limitations
and his disabilities.
III. Caleb led to God – he did not just sit in the sidelines.
o Age is an advantage: use it to be led in wise faith.
o Age is an advantage: use it to lead and set the example in wise faith.
CONCLUSION
Caleb looked back and saw the hand of God; he looked ahead and saw His glory… Caleb knew the God he served and this is the reason why he knew that no matter what was behind him, what is with him or what will be ahead, nothing can daunt a man who knows his God.
REFLECTION: Let us ask ourselves the following questions:
o Do I know the God I serve?
Can I still recall one of His most triumphant acts in my life? What
are they?
Can I now see His loving hand in the most painful scenes in my
life? Looking at myself now, do I really know the God I serve?
o Do I believe the God I serve?
Can I give just one time when I knew I walked with Him in faith – no
matter how trivial or how vital that time may be?
Now, can I give a situation that I am facing now that I honestly felt
that I doubted that God could really do something?
So… do I believe the God I serve?
o What limitations am I facing now that I wished I could do without?
Physically? Socially? Financially?
Why do I wish I didn’t have these limitations?
o What practical steps can I do to deal with these limitations?
Why do I think they will work?
o Looking at my very real limitations, how can God use me?
APPLICATION:
= prayer of commitment =
Heavenly Father, I praise You for being the Rock of All Ages who will never be tired of loving me. Forgive me for the times when I looked at myself and doubted what You could still do with me. Thank You for giving me this chance to rekindle my love for You. I rededicate the rest of my life to You and entrust it unto Your care. I surrender all my past, present and future glories, strengths, sorrows, weaknesses and dreams to You. Amen.
= statement of commitment =
Whenever I feel down, I will not have amnesia and will look back at His glorious hand in my life. Although I will acknowledge my very real limitations, I will now dwell there; I will look forward to what God can do through them.
CLOSING PRAYER