What Do You Need To Succeed?

Entering the Promised Land

We all have a Promised Land to enter.  It’s the place where we achieve our God-given purpose, the place where we become all that God intends us to be, the place where we receive all that God has for us.  But in order to enter our Promised Land, there’s something we need in order to succeed.

We can understand this better by taking a look at Numbers 13.  At the beginning of the chapter, the Israelites have arrived at the Desert of Paran.  Only a short distance away is the land of Canaan, the Promised Land.  But before they entered it, God told Moses to select twelve men to explore it. 

So Moses selected one man from each tribe to form this exploration party, and gave them these instructions:  “See what the land is like and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many.  What kind of land do they live in?  Is it good or bad?  What kind of towns do they live in?  Are they unwalled or fortified?  How is the soil?  Is it fertile or poor?  Are there trees in it or not?  Do your best to bring back some of the fruit of the land.”

The twelve spies went forth and explored what lay ahead.  They traveled together and followed Moses’ instructions precisely.  They all saw and experienced the same things.

But when they returned from their excursion, something curious happened.  Initially they all gave the same report:  “We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey!  Here is its fruit.  But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large” (Numbers 13:27-28).

They all agreed on what they had seen.  They brought back the answers Moses was seeking.  But there was sharp disagreement on what to do next.  Joshua and Caleb were confident that they should go and take possession of the land.  They were certain of success.

A Bad Report

But the remaining ten spies vehemently disagreed with Joshua and Caleb’s assessment.  “But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.”  And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored” (Numbers 13:31-32a).

What brought these ten men to this contradictory conclusion?  Take a close look at their reasons:

• “The land we explored devours those living in it.”  This was a dark and scary statement, but they gave no supporting facts for saying that.  They failed to explain what they meant by this.
• “All the people we saw there are of great size.”  They mentioned seeing the Nephilim there, which were mysterious giants said to be the offspring of “the sons of God” (or fallen angels) and “the daughters of men.”  Admittedly it could be frightening to face a giant.  But “all the people we saw” was an exaggeration, meant to mislead.
• “We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.”  This was the most revealing of their statements, and we can learn a lot by taking a closer look.  

The Danger of Comparison

The first thing we should notice is that these men have fallen into the trap of comparison.  It’s a common problem for all of us.  We see someone who impresses us for some reason.  It could be their physical appearance, or their talent and abilities.  It could be their accomplishments, or their material possessions, or their fame or social status.  Regardless of what the initial attraction is, we compare ourselves to them and find ourselves wanting.  We don’t measure up.  We aren’t “as good as.”  We end up feeling deficient and defective.

Comparison attacks our self image and self esteem.  Self image refers to the way we see ourselves, and self esteem refers to how we feel about ourselves.  They are closely linked, and both are vitally important in our ability to live a victorious life.  When our self image and self esteem are low, our self confidence is impacted.  We believe we are unable to do what is needed.  Our ability to achieve is severely impaired.

You can see how devastating the effects of comparison can be.  It leads to false beliefs and paralysis.  The ten spies were convinced that they were unable to win against the Canaanites.  Their focus on themselves and their own abilities caused them to forget or doubt God’s promise that “I will be with you.”

Comparison led them into deception.  They believed they were like grasshoppers, small and insignificant.  They projected this false belief into what they thought others thought of them:  “and we looked the same to them.”  How could they possibly know that?  They couldn’t.  But their deception opened the door to overwhelming fear of others, a fear that convinced them that their defeat was inevitable.

My Personal Experience

I know what these ten men experienced because I went through the same thing.  I’ve shared before how I was bullied throughout my childhood and adolescence.  The message I got from the kids who teased and tormented me was clear:  “You don’t measure up.  You’re not as good as us.  You don’t belong.  You’re a mistake, a weakling, a freak, a failure.”  In my case, comparison was forced upon me.  I heard the lies so often that they seemed to be truth to me. 

So I grew up believing that I was different, that everyone else was better than me.  That was how I saw myself.  My self image was formed by the distorted actions of others.  My self esteem also suffered; I really believed I didn’t amount to much.  There were days when I hated myself.  Depression became a daily companion.  These were problems that I could not fix by myself.

Thankfully, when I was 18 years old someone shared the gospel with me, and I prayed and asked Jesus into my life to be my Savior and Lord.  I didn’t fully understand what that meant at the time, but I clung to the belief that there was a God who loved me, a God who believed I was worth something.  Salvation came instantly, but the renewal of my mind took much longer.

How To Combat Comparison

Comparison causes us to focus on the wrong object, which leads to a lack of self confidence.  The advice of the world is that if you are feeling this way, you need to build up your self confidence.  The bookstores are full of self-help books professing to teach you how to do that.   

It sounds good, but it doesn’t work because your focus is still on the wrong object.  Switching your focus from others to yourself still leaves you with self esteem and self image issues.  You don’t need to build your self-confidence.  What you need is more God-confidence!

That was the difference between Joshua and Caleb and the other ten spies.  Joshua and Caleb weren’t relying on self confidence.  They had confidence in the mighty God who had rescued them from slavery, who had delivered them out of Egypt, who had miraculously provided for them over and over.  Their eyes were focused on the God who keeps His promises.  This is why Caleb could confidently say, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it” (Numbers 13:30).  He knew they could accomplish this in the strength of the Lord and by His power.  They did not need to rely on their own abilities.

So if you are struggling with your self image, or self esteem, or self confidence, get out of the comparison trap.  Shift your focus to the One who loves you, the One who has promised, “I will be with you.”  Take the practical steps that will lead you to victory:

• Get involved with a good church
• Renew your mind with the Word of God
• Discover your true identity in Christ

Are there giants in your life?  Face them as Joshua and Caleb did.  Get your focus on God– build your God-confidence!  That’s what you need to succeed.

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“Who Are You Listening To?”