Since God is sovereign, He is in charge of what comes into our lives.  He either directs or permits us to be where we are at any given time.  He has a reason for what He does.  Basically, He is working to conform us to the image of His Son.  (Rom. 8:28-29).  This purpose requires us to remain at certain points in life while He works to perfect us through circumstances, opportunities, the inner working of the Holy Spirit, etc.  How well we cooperate with Him has a direct bearing on how long it takes at that point.

    But when we have come to the place where He wants us to advance, He tells us to stop what we have been doing.  That is what He said to the Children of Israel, “Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount.”  Dwelling there had its purpose, but that was over.  It was time to move on.

    When it is time to leave the particular place we have been, we must take positive action to embrace the change.  God said, “Turn you, and take your journey.”  Turning suggests facing in a new direction.  Maybe a small change.  Maybe a large scale adjustment.  Then, in obedience to what God is saying, we are to start moving in the new direction.  This is not always comfortable.  Sometimes it is very scary.  But God knows what He is doing, and can be trusted to lead us in the right way.

    God is involved in every part of the journey.  He does not simply push us out of the comfort of the place where we have been, saying, “Hope you have a nice trip!”  He is working out a plan, so He has a place for us to go.  “Behold, I have set the land before you.”  This is not something of our choosing.  It is His choice.  We are to turn from the past to the future, as we begin to move toward God’s will for us.

    But we are not simply encouraged to move toward the new place or phase of God’s plan for us, we are given a challenge that involves a promise.  “Go in and possess the land.”  That may be a tall order, but the very fact that God tells us to do it is evidence that it can be done.  Whatever God requires, God provides.  What He commands is always impossible for us to accomplish by ourselves.  But God doesn't intend for us to do it by ourselves.  He provides His own presence and power to do what He tells us to do.

    The great tragedy of Israel’s history is that they refused to enter the land.  They did leave the mount.  They did travel toward the land of promise, the new place God wanted them to experience.  But they refused to go in.  They stopped short of God’s plan.  And they missed the blessings God had for them.  It was another generation and another day before the blessings of obedience were experienced.

    They had a great opportunity.  But they were so self-centered, and their faith in God was so small, that they missed the chance of a lifetime.  Literally.  And they never got it again.

    When God brings us to a turning point, let’s turn and go in!