The Lord your God which goeth before you, he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes...
Yet in this thing ye did not believe the Lord your God...
And the Lord heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying,
Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers.
(Deuteronomy 1:30,32, and 34-35 KJV)
If God promised you a great blessing, would you do what He told you to do get it? Most people would say yes. But what if there was something that laid between you and your blessing? What if that certain thing was terrifying? What if it looked impossible for you to retrieve your blessing? Would you still go forward as God directed?
God told the children of Israel to go forward and take the land. In fact, the land was promised to them. But there was something that laid between the children of Israel and the land. The children of Israel had to go to war for the land. And it just so happened that the land was guarded by a large, defensive wall. The land also had great warriors who I am sure had more experience at war than the children of Israel. And if that wasn't enough to prompt fear, the land also had giants as a superb line of defense.
So, imagine you were one of the children of Israel. Would you, with limited to no experience in war, go and take a land with such superior defenses? It's easy for us to say that we would do whatever God asks of us if there are no obstacles in the way. But when monstrous problems arise, we tend to think twice about moving towards our blessings.
The children of Israel allowed the fear of their enemies to take precedence over their trust in God. Therefore, they refused to go get their blessing. But please understand this. God told them to go and take the land. Thus, their decision to not go was an act of disobedience. God told them to go, and they said no.
However, the children of Israel had a change of heart. After they told God no, they decided to go and take the land after all. They realized the error of their ways and wanted to receive the promised blessing. But they were told by way of Moses that God would no longer be with them if they go and try to take the land. They were told the land would be given to their children, not them. They were also told to go into the wilderness.
But the children of Israel once again decided not to listen to God. They boldly went up to fight and were embarrassingly defeated. To top it all off, they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years... which was just enough time for the older generation to die out and for the next generation to come up.
So, here's my point:
Move when God tells you to move! Go when He tells you to go! And do it expeditiously! If you wait, You disobey Him. God didn't pity the children of Israel's fear nor did He accept it as an excuse. Rather, He viewed their action as disobedience. Their fear wasn't disobedient, but allowing fear to stop them from doing what God commanded was disobedient.
If you wait to move out of fear after God tells you to move, God will not look at your fear. He will look at your disobedience. The opportunity to retrieve your blessing could very well never present itself again in your lifetime. Furthermore, God could give what was meant to be your blessing to someone else.
If God is urging you to move away from sin, a bad relationship, or from amongst what is familiar to you, then move! If God told you to go and start your own business, bid on that home, or apply for that position, then go! Don't miss your God-given opportunities. God opens doors for us, but if we don't walk through them, He can close it. Please don't assume the door will always be open for you. Let's learn from the children of Israel and take the blessing when it is offered.
Be blessed!