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October 30, 2021

Numbers 14:20-25 (NIV)

20 The Lord replied, “I have forgiven them, as you asked. 21 Nevertheless, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the Lord fills the whole earth, 22 not one of those who saw my glory and the signs I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times— 23 not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to their ancestors. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it. 24 But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it. 25 Since the Amalekites and the Canaanites are living in the valleys, turn back tomorrow and set out toward the desert along the route to the Red Sea.”

CONSIDER THIS

But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. (Hebrews 3:13)

Welcome back to today! ;0) 

About 25 years ago I made a new friend who introduced me to today’s text. He and I began working at a church in The Woodlands, Texas, on the same day. Though we were quite different people, we had a lot in common—both from small towns, both fans of country music, and both lovers of Jesus. We first met in the break room of this church we had come to serve. We learned in that encounter that we were both there to help our mutual friend, Bob Swan, begin what would become a profound community of faith within The Woodlands Methodist Church called The Harvest. As we shook hands, I said, “I’m John David Walt.” He replied, “I’m Chris Tomlin.” 

I should tell you, this was before he really became “Chris Tomlin,” whose songs would go on to become more than a few of the the most sung songs in the world in the last hundred years. As I introduced him to our New Room Conference a couple years back, “This guy would go on to become Chris Tomlin, and I am still John David Walt. 

So why am I telling you this? After all, Billy Graham once told me to never drop names. ;0) I bring it up because soon after we met we found ourselves talking about the texts and verses of Scripture that had meant the most to us. I have no memory of what I shared, but I will never forget his. He said his life verse was Numbers 14:24. 

But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it. 

It takes a person of a “different spirit” to even claim Numbers 14:24 as a life verse doesn’t it. At that point in my life and faith, the book of Numbers hadn’t exactly been one of my go-to books for inspiration. I’ll credit Chris, who remains a close friend to this day (lives about two miles from me now) for this stretch, now going on two weeks, through Numbers 13-14. 

But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it. 

Behind this word, “spirit,” is the Hebrew word, “ruach.” It is the exact same term we see in Genesis 1:2:  “The Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” It’s the same concept we see in Acts 2:2 where it says, “Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.” And behind this word, “wholeheartedly” we see the Hebrew term, “maw-lay,” which means to be filled or full. It’s the same term we see in Exodus 40, where “the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.” 

But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly,

Here’s my amateur translation: Caleb has set his sail to catch the wind of Holy Spirit and the vessel of his heart is filled with the fullness of God. 

Daily Text Reader, I want to tell you something about yourself. There is a reason you have discovered and are now delving into this Daily Text journey. It’s because you have a different spirit and aspire to follow Jesus wholeheartedly. You are part of the minority report. You stand in the line of Caleb and Joshua. Every day I write I am writing to people whose hearts beat to the tune of Numbers 14:24.

But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it. 

I recently learned something about the Daily Text. I have known for some time we have an extraordinarily high “open rate,” which is to say an unusually high degree of commitment among our subscribers. And though we have tens of thousands of subscribers, and a strong open rate, we have what is known as a high “churn rate.” In other words, we have a lot of new people subscribe (thanks largely to your hospitality) and then opt out within a short period of time. They determine, for whatever reason, this is not for them. It’s ok. . . if they want chicken soup for the soul (JUST KIDDING!!!). Seriously, we are all on a journey and The Seedbed Daily Text is not for everyone. One thing, though, I do know. There are many many more people like us out there, and we need to find them. Why? Because these kind of people must be encouraged daily—as long as it is called today. Why? Because we are sowing for a great awakening.

Come February 17, 2022, we will cross the seven year mark of the Seedbed Daily Text. As we enter into year 8, we are going to look to a further horizon of the Kingdom. We are sensing Jesus call us to keep doing a small thing (sowing) with a bigger vision. We will need your help more than ever before. I’ll be writing you more about this soon. Start praying now. 

But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it.

THE PRAYER

Father, thank you for giving us a different spirit, one that causes us to follow you wholeheartedly. Jesus, I belong to you—with my whole heart. Come Holy Spirit and make it more and more and more so every single day. Thank you for encouraging us. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen. 

THE QUESTION

Does Numbers 14:24 fit for you? Are you growing in this “different spirit” to follow Jesus whole-heartedly? I’d love to hear about it. 

For the Awakening,
J.D. Walt
Sower-in-Chief
seedbed.com

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WHAT IS THIS? Wake-Up Call is a daily encouragement to shake off the slumber of our busy lives and turn our eyes toward Jesus. Each morning our community gathers around a Scripture, a reflection, a prayer, and a few short questions, inviting us to reorient our lives around the love of Jesus that transforms our hearts, homes, churches, and cities.

Comments and Discussion

2 Responses

  1. J.D., I thank you for these Daily Texts. This is the first thing I read in the morning after I’ve spent an hour of prayer and meditation with God. I do pray to be used by God to be a conduit of his grace and currently facilitate several small group Bible studies and a gathering of believers from various churches on Sunday afternoons for worship, praise and fellowship, hoping to encourage a stronger manifestation of the unity that we have in Christ. I share some of what I learn here with these groups. May your efforts here be continually blessed.

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