Give Me This Mountain

I like the title of the chapter. It does not tell us much about the contents other than the fact it is a statement of faith. It also appears to ask for the difficult. We find in the early sentences which Bible text the author is talking about and which person made this statement.

"Every nation has its forgotten heroes, and this is true of Old Testament histow as well. We readily think of men like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, or David. But how often do we Bear about a man named Caleb? When Caleb was eighty-five years old, he came to Joshua to claim his inheritance in the Promised Land. He said, "Now therefore give me this mountain." What an example Caleb is for us today!" (p. 146)
Imagine that, the man and his condition. Caleb is indeed one forgotten hero of the Bible. We more commonly remember Joshua since there is a book with the title of his name. The lesser hero is Caleb. The second key feature here is his age. He is 85 years old when this is recorded. Imagine having such faith and boldness at such an age. I am 31 way less than half his age and I struggle right now to ask for the impossible.
"What are some of the lessons we learn from this forgotten hero, Caleb? For one thing, we learn that the defeats of others need not make us losers as well. Because of the unbelief of the ten spies and the rest of Israel, Caleb bad to wander in the wilderness for forty years, when he could have been enjoying his inheritance. But Caleb didn't give up just because the majority was wrong. Caleb continued to trust God, knowing that one day he would claim his inheritance.
Perhaps you are suffering because of another's mistakes or sins. Look at Caleb and learn the importance of trusting God in spite of what others do. Like Caleb, we can afford to wait, knowing that one day God is going to honor our faith and give us our inheritance. Caleb's body may have been in the wilderness, but his heart was in the Promised Land. Isn't that the way we Christians should live? Our citizenship is in heaven--our hearts ought to be in heaven. Keep trusting the Lord; your inheritance is secure with Him." (p. 147)
Caleb waited 40 years because of the mistakes of others. He had faith while the great majority doubted God's promises. Caleb was in a difficult place, the wilderness, but his eyes were on the promise land from God. How hard it must have been to keep his eyes on the promise land. The wilderness is really a bad place to be when you know there is a promise land nearby. Right now, I am in a wilderness. Today has been very hard. Yesterday felt like I was further along the road of recovery. I actually got solid sleep and woke up after 6:00, something I have not done for many months. I felt energized and healthy when I woke up and that in turn made my mood good. I had no joint issues the entire day, but this morning I was back to poor, short, fragmented sleep and so was tired and drained all day. I have had joint issues all day and have been so discouraged and defeated today. I feel quite alone in a undesired wilderness.

"But there is a second lesson he teaches us: age is no barrier to making conqesls for the Lord. Here was a man eighty-five years old! And he is asking for a mountain! Not just any mountain, but a mountain controlled by a tribe of great and mighty warriors. Eighty-five is a good age to settle down in some comfortable valley, but Caleb asked for a mountain.
If the years are adding up and you think your work is done, dismiss that idea from your mind. These were not declining years for Caleb; they were years of going higher! He wanted to live in the mountain! How important it is to have an optimistic, enthusiastic attitude toward life. Caleb didn't say that his best years were over; he said that his best years were vet to come.
Granted, Caleb was still in good health; and this means a lot. But Caleb's power came from his faith in God. He knew that God was able to overcome the enemy and give him his inheritance. "And this is the victor?' that overcometh .... even our faith" (1 John 5:4). To complain is to sin; to worry is to sin; but to trust God for the future and claim His inheritance is to enter into a life of joy and satisfaction.
I don't know what mountains you may be facing just now. Perhaps there is a mountain of debt before you medical bills or some other obligation. Perhaps it is a mountain of suffering, or you may be facing surge). Don't look upon that mountain as an enemy to shun: look upon it as an inheritance to claim. Ask God to give you that mountain, and trust Him to see you through to victory." (p. 148).
This is perhaps one of the most powerful paragraphs of the book and I am almost to the last chapter. It is powerful because it asks for the impossible and has faith instead of the odds. My faith is so weak these days and my heart so heavy. I lose a little bit more faith each day as I feel God's forgotten me. Over and over again in mind the phrase "I feel done at 31" circles in my mind. 31 to many is a young age, but right now I feel super old and done with my life. I have no energy, no hope and I feel like I am slipping fast. I have a huge mountain I have been praying for but God hasn't given it to me yet. I don't want to be done at 31, I want to have better years and a better life.

Caleb didn't look back. He looked ahead and trusted God to give him a victorious future. Caleb's motto was, "The best is yet to come!" And isn't that the motto of every tree Christian? There are always new blessings to receive, new lessons to learn, new victories to win. Life would be terribly boring if God didn't bring new challenges to our lives from time to time.
The beautiful thing about Caleb's victoT is that he was able to leave that mountain inheritance to his family. His children and grandchildren enjoyed that mountain in the years that followed. The decisions we make in life affect other people. If we run from the challenges of life, then we lose that inheritance to leave to others. But if, like Caleb, we face the challenges honestly and claim them by faith, then we enrich our inheritance, and this means blessings to others.
Whenever I think of Caleb, I think of Jesus Christ. He faced a mountain one day called Calvary: It was on Calvarv that Jesus would die for the sins of the world and thereby claim the greatest inheritance in history. He would make it possible for sinners to become the children of God and enter into heaven. He would leave behind for us a magnificent inheritance. The apostle Peter tells us that this inheritance is "incorruptible, and undefiled, and.., fadeth not away" (1 Peter 1:4). Caleb had to fight many battles against the giants to claim his inheritance. Jesus fought one battle on CalvaW, and gave His life to secure the victory; and now He reigns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and we reign with Him as we yield ourselves to Him.
If you want to claim your mountain, begin by surrendering to Christ. He alone can give you the faith and courage to face life and conquer the enemy." (pp. 149-150)
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, I need faith and courage to make it through this wilderness. You provided the victory so that we may have eternal life and salvation. Yet, in these times I feel dead and empty inside. My faith is dying and my mood is dropping. I ask for the mountain of restored health and wholeness. I ask for this mountain of life abundant. Lord Jesus I ask for total healing of my body and mind. You alone can bring hope and healing to the forgotten and weak. At times, I really don't have enough belief. I want to believe the best is yet to come but I feel done at 31. I feel borderline exhausted. I have dreamed so many times for a better life, but I have been oppressed by my condition and tempted to depression by the enemy. Lord Jesus, please give me victory over this oppression.