Do you have Caleb's faith?

Romans 15:13 "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit".

I have talked about Caleb in another entry but I want to look at his faith again. Don't we need to be reminded of God's faithfulness to us? How much hope do you have right now? I will quickly admit that there are times in which my hope is running on low... and lower. I have a friend who says that when she is low, she is lower than a pregnant ant! That is low. Caleb knew his promise of Jehovah for his part of the promised land. He waited 40+ years before he was able to claim what was his. Think of David in that he was anointed by Samuel as a teenager to be king of Judah but it took many years before that came to pass. Think of Joseph and his dream to have his brothers bow down to him. We don't know if that was a selfish teenage dream of a younger brother or if he just knew it would happen, but he held onto his dream. If his brothers had not sold him into slavery he would not have been used to save the entire Israelite nation plus the Egyptians. God always work things out. Here are some steps I think Caleb took in keeping his hope in God. C - He claimed his promise, personally. He, by faith, knew God would give him the land. A - He allowed the Holy Spirit to keep him at peace during that time, while he led his family right. He did not get ahead of God's timing, but had peace that it would come to pass. L - He loved others enough not to cut them down or try to cheat them out their inheritance. E - He enjoyed each of day waiting. I doubt if he spent his days saying, "Lord, you know I am getting old, when?" No, I think he used each day to prepare for the future. He exercised to keep an old man in good shape. Do you? And finally, I think he B - began the forty year journey with a solid belief that God was going to bring his dream to pass. He never gave up and quit! So, don't give up on your dreams.

Tags: faith, hope, dream