Valley of Eshcol

Eshcol is a sample of the Promise Land where a cluster of grapes was so big and heavy that the spies Moses sent to scout the land “bare it between two upon a staff” (Numbers 13:23).  But it was also a land of giants, and great walled cities.  And here in is the rub.  In order for the Hebrews to obtain the territory God had promised them, they had to face these obstacles. But lacking the faith to do so, they, instead, wandered the wilderness for forty years until the men of that generation perished and the next generation was finally ready to claim it (Numbers 32:9-13).  What a tragic story! 

Those who have been in the Valley of Eshcol know there is always a choice to be made here. Rich and ripe with the promises of God, it also comes with obstacles, with giants and high walls that need overcoming. Ask any person in ministry.  Usually that ministry has been brought about at great cost.  But the same can be said of our personal life.  The promises God makes to us often seem to take forever to materialize, and there seems to be one wall after another to be scaled, one giant after another that hinders our progress. That wayward child God has promised to deliver from drugs seems to be only getting worse; in stead of that healing God promised we seem to get sicker; and rather than God’s promised provision, our finances continue sinking deeper into the red. The list goes on.

In this valley much is at stake. Like the Hebrews, we can throw up our hands and say the giants are too big, the cities too fortified that victory is impossible and God’s promises will never come to pass. Or, we can be like Caleb and Joshua, the only two spies who had no fear and knew they could possess the land because God was with them; and the only two spies permitted to enter the Promise Land with the new generation. God’s ways are higher than ours and He doesn’t measure time the way we do.  But if we stay the course, no matter how long it takes, His promises will come to pass. He never fails. He will deliver.

“Let us not be weary in well doing; for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” Galatians 6:9

Until next time,

Sylvia