Thoughts on One in a Million
Melanie - May 13, 2010
So yesterday I mentioned that I'd just finished Priscilla Shirer's One in a Million Bible study. A few of you asked for more information about it (and by a few, I think I mean one) so I thought I'd share a little bit about what I learned throughout the study.
The entire focus is on the children of Israel. When Moses led them out of Egypt there were two million of them, yet of the original two million, only two made it to the Promised Land. Joshua and Caleb.
Priscilla discusses what the wilderness can look like in our own lives and how God uses it to bring us to a place of intimacy with Him. God doesn't want us to merely seek Him for His benefits, but to seek Him because we desire to know Him more. And God knows our hearts.
Honestly, there were so many times throughout the study that I became uncomfortable with how much I related to the Israelites as they wandered through the desert. I'd get frustrated by how quick they were to forget that the same God who parted the Red Sea and provided manna for each new day was the God who was leading them on this journey. Yet they doubted and complained and grumbled.
I'd never do that.
Right.
How often do I forget what God has delivered me from? The blessings He's poured out on my family? The trials He's helped us through when logic and common sense said that there was no solution? Yet I worry and I fret and I complain when a new situation arises. It kind of makes me feel like an idiot when I stop and think about it.
But after Moses died, Joshua took over. And with Joshua came a new brand of leadership. Joshua didn't doubt. He took God at His word and acted immediately. As Priscilla says, "Joshua acted fearlessly, in spite of insurmountable odds."
And he was rewarded with the Promised Land.
I want to have that kind of faith. I don't want to just sit in church every Sunday and learn a nice, neat little lesson. I want a faith that will change my life and the lives around me. I want a faith that leaves my fears behind.
One thing Priscilla said that has really stuck with me is, "The area of sensitivity and tenderness in your life is probably the area where God wants you to experience the most victory, where He wants the biggest ministry to come from your life." That's not always an easy thing. That area is sensitive and tender for a reason, yet it might be the very thing God wants to use. The question is will we let Him use it. Will we surrender ourselves and our fear and our pride to let God use us?
In the words of Priscilla, "God doesn't call us to do the possible. He calls us to do the impossible and then He equips us to handle it."
Melanie
Melanie
Sophie
Sophie
Paige
Paige
Kris
Kris
Comments (2)
This has to be one of my favorite studies by Priscilla. I read it in June of 2009, and I have to tell you it was powerful. From start to finish, it took me on a journey of revelation, conviction, and transformation. I couldn’t put it down. I recommend that all women read this book. If you are serious about breaking free of your personal Egypt’s and moving forward into the real freedom found in your personal Canaan’s, then this is the study/book for you.
Posted on May 16, 2010 3:39 PM
Would this study be appropriate for men as well as women?
Posted on June 10, 2010 9:42 AM