A Lesson at Mt. Nebo

I stood on Mt. Nebo in the spot where God showed Moses the promised land that he would never enter. My heart was filled with wonder at the thought of Moses’ journey of faith in God and in the promise of a nation.

Moses has always been one of my favorite characters in the Old Testament. Perhaps it’s because I can identify with him in the fight against slavery. He was an abolitionist, used by God to free the Israelites from captivity in Egypt. Moses faithfully lead the Israelites for years in the wilderness.

The Iraelites’ journey and their struggle to trust God is often a great parallel  to my own journey of faith.  The children of Israel struggled to trust God. They complained, doubted God and at one point thought that slavery in Egypt was better than freedom in the wilderness. Yet in all of that, God provided everything they needed to live. 

So many times, I have found myself struggling to trust God in the unknown seasons. Fear has sometimes become more comfortable than faith but just like the Israelites, God has always provided for my every need. He patiently leads me out of the wilderness of fear, doubt, insecurity and discouragement and into freedom. 

I wonder if Moses was disappointed to not enter the promised land? He fought hard to free his people, so maybe leading a great nation toward freedom was enough.

Looking out at the vast view of Mt. Nebo toward Jericho and beyond, the word freedom came to mind.

Freedom is a word that I feel I so often take for granted. Over the years, God has taught me the power of freedom when he called me to be a voice in the social justice movement. 

I thought I had a good grasp of the word freedom, until I spent a day in Jordan visiting the baptismal site of Jesus and the place where Moses stood to look out at the promised land. Two places representing promises made and promises being fulfilled. 

To walk where Jesus actually walked and remember why he walked the earth truly captivated my heart. From now on, when I read the account of John baptizing Jesus, I no longer have to imagine how the site might have appeared. I just have to look at this picture and remember just how real that baptism was and just how real of a sacrifice He made. 

Bethany Beyond the Jordan and Mt. Nebo represent the journey of slavery to freedom. The Holy Spirit reminded me of the moment I first made Jesus the leader of my life. The feeling of forgiveness and freedom came rushing into my heart all over again. I am free and I walk freely in the love and forgiveness of God.

King David wrote, “He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me.”  (2 Samuel 22:20; Psalm 18:19) 

To anyone reading this, do you feel stuck or enslaved to an idea or a lie about yourself or God? How has your journey from slavery to freedom been? Maybe fear has been your captor? I don’t know at what point of your journey you might be in but I do know this-He created us to walk in the freedom of the promise of being His sons and daughters. 

I am not the greatest writer and in fact, except for the grace of God, I have no idea how I was picked to attend this press tour. I’m grateful, I know that much.

As we pulled away from Mt. Nebo, tears came to my eyes as I realized that I had left a part of myself on top of that mountain. The encounter I had with God, looking out to the same distance as Moses did so many years before, changed my life. I felt challenged to surrender every fear and doubt to God. 

In that moment with God, on the same mountain where Moses once stood, my heart was renewed at the reminder of the goodness of God.