“Not much further now,” the urgent voice that had kept me going encouraged. My back was screaming from its unnatural position. My shoulders humped forward, my head hung between them. With each step, my feet pleaded for a rest. My right foot crunched the cracked mud and my left foot followed suit.
“Crunch, crunch, crunch.” No sound followed my next step. My eyes refused to believe what was beneath my feet. I brought my hands to my face and rubbed my eyes. I peeked and saw dew-kissed grass nestled between my toes. I wiggled my toes and felt my parched feet drinking the dew. I dropped to my knees and pulled blades of grass. Without any compunction, I tried to rub the moisture on my lips.
Suddenly, I felt movement beneath me. The ground shook. My ears gleaned a distinct rumble that sounded like a pack of animals. I raised my eyes and gasped. Breathtaking mountains and lush green valleys spilled out as far as my eyes could see. Cascading waterfalls and rippling pools of crystal water beckoned me. This was it! This was the land that drinks rain from heaven, the land God promised me, my Canaan. Joy, such joy as I had not felt in so long threatened to overwhelm me and spill into my eyes. The rumble grew louder, and my spine tingled in anticipation. I slowly stood to my feet, and my breath whooshed out of my lungs. Dozens of giants were marching straight toward me. Instinct told me that they had zeroed in on me, and their sheer size convinced me that I was not a worthy adversary.
“No! It can’t be,” I screamed. I was so close. This was my land. God said so.
“Haven’t I struggled enough?” I asked Him. “I thought this was my Canaan. How could You?”
I turned and had every intention of returning to the desert. Who knew that I would ever be desperate for the wilderness that had almost killed me? But at the edge of the grass, I stopped.
If I ran, I was no better then the others. God had promised not that it would be easy but that this was my land to possess, the land He would give me. I turned and smiled in spite of my cracked lips.
I widened my stance and felt my heart pounding in my chest.
“I have no idea how, but I know You promised, and therefore I’m taking this land in Jesus’ name,” I pronounced. How God could use this dried-up vessel, I had no idea, but no doubt remained.
I squared my shoulders. I grimaced at the pain from straightening my curved spine. I took a step. Noticing a twinge in my foot, I glanced down. I viewed my foot encased in an armored boot. More armor wrapped itself around my leg and activated my muscles with its enclosure. With the beginnings of a smile evident on my face, I took a deep breath and another step—the same thing happened. I started running. I grabbed the shield placed in my left hand. My right hand clutched a sword. As I approached, a helmet enclosed my face, and with it a healing balm that quenched my dry, parched skin. I felt His power coursing through me, and I yelled a warrior’s call to battle. My hand holding the sword began to tingle and slowly moved upward arching over my head in small dangerous circles. The giants continued their march, and I saw their intent was to surround me. I laughed. I wanted to sing, “This land is my land. This land ain’t your land!”
In a voice that I barely recognized as my own, I said, “God promised me this land, so it’s time for you to go.” I chuckled at myself, feeling like Clint Eastwood or Arnold Schwarzenegger in an action movie. Their circle tightened, and my sword continued swinging. Adrenaline coursed through every sinew of my body. It was at that exact moment, I experienced “in my weakness, He is strong.” I saw glimpses of God’s hand on my arm and felt Him behind me. He guided every move, every step.
I was amazed at my agility and knowledge. It was as if I had been training my whole life. How did I know? I sidestepped slashes at my body, and guided the sword to its target. My body moved as well as any battle-trained warrior I had ever seen. Then I knew that my training had come day by day. Each time I had struggled, each time I had tripped, each time I had fallen, God had been preparing me. Many times I had given up, feeling that my enemies were too strong and powerful for me. I had not fought giants of this size, but He gave me the strength and ability I needed to defeat my powerful foes. And just like I had learned from my other battles, I would learn today. For the first time, I embraced the knowledge that with God all things are possible.
The number of giants quickly diminished. Instead of feeling tired, I gained energy with each giant’s demise. This battle was mine. This land was mine. My glistening steel rang in the air. One by one, the giants lay at my feet, defeated. I stepped over their bodies and knew this victory was not mine alone.
“Thank you,” I whispered. What else could I say?
Victoriously jubilant, I ran toward the waterfall. The armor fell away. Without stopping, I raced to the edge and leaped with my arms stretched wide.
“Thank you!” I yelled just before I plunged beneath the water. I kicked toward the surface and breathed in the heavenly air. I slowly circled and gazed at the land that God had given to me. Overwhelmed with emotion, I felt tears spill and splash down my face.
“I almost missed this,” I smiled through my tears. “Almost.”
But the land you are crossing the Jordan to take possession of is a land of mountains and valleys that drinks rain from heaven.~Deuteronomy 11:11 NIV
The LORD your God himself will drive them out of your way. He will push them out before you, and you will take possession of their land, as the LORD your God promised you.~Joshua 23:5 NIV
O Sovereign LORD , you are God! Your words are trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant. ~2 Samuel 7:28 NIV
