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Scripture for the day: Joshua 14:9, 12 “So Moses swore on that day, saying, ‘Surely the land where your foot has trodden shall be your inheritance and your children’s forever, because you have wholly followed the Lord my God.’ … Now therefore, give me this mountain of which the Lord spoke in that day; for you heard in that day how the Anakim were there, and that the cities were great and fortified. It may be that the Lord will be with me, and I shall be able to drive them out as the Lord said.”
Thought for the day: Yesterday we talked a bit about claiming the mountain the Lord has promised us. One of the criteria for claiming that mountain is the willingness to rely on God’s provision and follow the vision regardless of public opinion. Nothing matters in receiving the inheritance the Lord has promised except a trust that will not turn and run when the way gets difficult and a faith that the One who promised is faithful and He will do it.
 The second criteria for possessing the mountain the Lord has promised is that we possess the promise as accomplished, no matter the set-back that might come our way. Wholly following God means never losing sight of the end He has guaranteed. Honestly, how many of us would be willing to wait 45 years for someone to make good on a promise he’d made to provide some material gain? I think most of us would have written the whole promise off many years before. But not Caleb.
 I know I keep coming back to this, but it had been 45 years! Years of struggle, years of discouragement, years of being saddled with a bunch of people who still wanted to go back to Egypt. Suddenly, the time had come and Caleb said, “I don’t care about the giants; I don’t care about the mountains; I don’t care about the challenges. The bigger they are, the harder they fall! Now, give me my mountain!” 
 I remember moving to Colorado in order to attend Nazarene Bible College. Once we were settled in, I got a phone call from a friend in New York who was considering attending the school as well. He asked, “How did you get a job and find a place to live before you got there?” I smiled and said, “Let me tell you a story.” Then I went on to tell him of how I’d quit my job at the Post Office, sold our house in Maine and packed everything we could in a U-Haul. When we got to Colorado Springs, we had one night’s reservation in a motel and a pocket full of faith. One giant at a time, the Lord provided for our every need as He gave us the mountain He’d promised. 
 Listen, you can cook a stew in a few minutes by setting the right time on a microwave, but if you want a really good one, you’ve got to be patient while it simmers on the back of the stove for whatever time is necessary. Don’t be discouraged by postponements; God’s not done and He hasn’t abandoned us any more than He did the children of Israel. Hold onto the promise and you are promised a delightful provision. 
 Caleb finally got what he’d waited for. He got the mountain God had promised; all he had to do was go and take it. Caleb smiled when Joshua granted him Hebron. He said, “I’m as strong today as I was 45 years ago.” No he wasn’t! Physically he was wracked by the ravages of age, and he knew it. So, what did Caleb do? He hosted a beauty contest. He let it be known: “He who attacks Kirjath Sepher and takes it, to him I will give Achsah my daughter as wife.” The point is, he got what God had promised.
 And what of you and me? What has God promised? Don’t be persuaded by the nay-sayers. Don’t ever allow yourself to doubt the promise. Better yet, don’t allow yourself to doubt the God of the promise. The mountain is still there; the giants may be bigger than ever. There may be more reason for discouragement today than you’ve ever experienced. But God hasn’t gotten weaker, nor has He forgotten. Go get your mountain!