There Are Giants In The Land
As a child that was in love with wrestling WWE, then WWF, “Andre The Giant” was my fear and dread. His intimating size and his natural strength made him an extraterrestrial to me. For context, Andre was 7 feet 4 inches and weighed 240kg. He was nicknamed “The Eighth Wonder of The World”. If I was put in a ring with him, I will not even attempt a fight. I would make a deal — I will lie down and you will put your finger on my chest and the referee will count me out. Infact, as a kid that dreaded the dark, my worst fear was that I would run into Andre. He was of “King Kong” status.
So giants are real and they are intimidating. You do not want to mess with them. Neither do you want to engage them? As such, you dey your dey so that there would be peace. Mind your business and let them mind theirs and if your lanes cross or criss-cross, please give way to them.
“Meet your fears with faith.” — Max Lucado
In the Nigerian socio-economic circles and geo-political settings, there are giants. And they are mean and unforgiving. Some of us have had a taste of their powers against us and it was not funny. Let me give you some examples….
- Social Injustice
- Bribery and Corruption
- Police Brutality
- Occultism
- Godfathers
- Cultism
- Unemployment
- Nepotism
- Tribalism
One of the things I see often in the life of faith is when people blast the children of Israel. We say things like “how can you see the red sea divide and then you doubt God?”, “How can you desire the cucumber of Egypt more than freedom?” We keep going on and on. It is easy to blast others but when we turn the searchlight on ourselves, then we see the Israelites in us. Let us go on this short journey together.
Recall that 12 spies were sent out to view the land and they came back with FACTUAL facts. Facts don’t lie — “there are giants in the land and we cannot take the land”. This report was a reasonable reason not to bother. It was reason enough to find another land and settle there.
But there was an issue.
“What do we do with the promise that God had given us?” asked Caleb and Joshua. “Do we deny its existence? Do we leave it for another generation to bother with? Or do we take those promises at face value and go for it”
The fellas were quiet. They knew that these guys were saying the truth. Since this silence was not golden, both (Joshua & Caleb) told the people what they will do — “We will believe God’s promises as a good report and take the land before us”.
“Yes there are giants in the land but the Lord has promised us the land. We cannot forsake God’s word at this time and move to Canada. We are the salt of the earth and we cannot vary God’s word. God gave us the name of the land and we have to go get it. If the Lord can move us out of slavery from the strongest nation on the earth, then He can give us this land. We need to rely on the strength of His promise”.
This was the mindset of Joshua and Caleb.
Faith acts in defiance of facts. Defiance does not mean that the facts are not there but I chose to work without them. Faith needs doggedness and resilience. There are things that you have to cast the word for 20 years before they come to pass. It is the tenacity of faith.
When the Israelites were in exile in various dispensations, they always always knew that salvation will come and they kept at it. For some, it took 70 years and for others, it took 430 years. For example, Abraham believed the word he was given as concerning Isaac. He kept at it. Not easy for a man who was aging and knew that he had fewer years to be alive and the deadness of his wife’s womb was evident.
Brethren and those of us in the geographic enclave called Nigeria. Do not fear the giants in the land. Your staying here is an act of prophecy and it should not be taken lightly. You are fulfilling prophecy and you are defying the odds. You are not taking the easy way out because you have the promise of God as concerning your life and also the land. We cannot desalt this land that requires preservation until salvation comes.
You cannot salt from afar. The salt has to be involved in other to make an impact. The salt is always added. The salt mixes with whatsoever it needs to salt or preserve. Being the salt of the earth is like parenting — you do not parent wirelessly. You parent those in front of you because they have to see you and see that you do as you say. That is the biggest influence you can have on your kids.
If salting can be done from afar, then Jesus had no reason to come. Redemption could have been done from afar (heaven). But the principle of salting, which Jesus said we are because we follow His example, is that you are to be mixed with the object to be salted. Nna, na wetin make Jesus come be that o. He came to bear witness and experience what mankind is going through. Jesus understands betrayal, denial, bad government, doubt, lies et al. That is why He can intercede on our behalf.
If you flee because of whatsoever good reason, when you have the promise of God with you then you are just like one of the Israelites, who desired the cucumber of Egypt rather than the promises of God. Others might desire the cucumber but you child of God….no…no..no. For man shall no live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.
“God’s Word is pure and sure, in spite of the devil, in spite of your fear, in spite of everything.” — R.A. Torrey
Stay in your duty post. Stay in your place of assignment. I have no promises for you except what God has promised. You may suffer hardness for Christ’s sake as Paul admonishes but there is no greater joy than being in the plan of God for that moment. God will direct you. God will comfort you.
And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. — Acts 20:32 King James Version
May we be faithful to our calling…to salt the land that we have been called into. May we be engraced to do so. May we find strength in the words of scriptures. May the Holy Spirit shows us the words of the scriptures that our very presence makes a difference in the lives of others. Selah.
You can check other uplifting articles on matters of the faith that I have written. They are Rules of Engagement On Social Media For The Christian Soul,The Gentile’s Prayer, Faith Cometh…, Selah Moments, Rooting The Book of Ruth, Timely & Timeless, Me & My Entertainment, The Athlete & I — A Critical Look, My Fellow Prisoners , Holy Paradox, Let’s Hear Jesus Out On This…, Colourful! , Me, Jephthah & Retold Stories, More Than Money…, The Boundaryless Life and The Giving Giver
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Regards,
Gabriel.
