You're More than a Grasshopper
Numbers 13, Sermons from Another Dimension
Hi friends,
This week, I want to help you reflect on how you view yourself:
What do you believe yourself capable of?
What value do you believe you possess?
What do you believe others see or think when they look at you?
All these questions matter because the stories we tell ourselves play a pivotal role in shaping the world we live in and defining reality for us.
In Numbers 13, there’s a scene that displays this truth beautifully. Before entering “The Promised Land,” twelve leaders are sent to scout the land out. Is the land they believe God is leading them into a good land to make their home? What are its current inhabitants like?
After forty days of scouting, these leaders come back with their assessment. While all twelve were in agreement about the beauty of the land, ten spread a bad report. They believed the inhabitants were two big and powerful for them, and that any hope of taking over this land should be abandoned. Only two of the scouts, while acknowledging the challenges, tried convincing the people that they could take the land.
Which report do you think became the dominant belief?
The report convincing the entire assembly that they didn’t have what it takes and they should not step out with faith and courage. Here’s the narrative that became contagious in the camp:
“The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size… We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” (Numbers 13:32-33)
It was this self-limiting belief than kept the Israelites wandering the desert for forty years before finally stepping into “The Promised Land.”
Sometimes it’s wise to exercise caution and not step out. But others times, we limit ourselves from experiencing what we’re capable of because we believe ourselves nothing more than small, powerless grasshoppers. We deny ourselves opportunities because we have created a narrative in our heads that refuses to see the greatness we possess within. Or, we neglect to remember the Spirit who empowers us for the challenges and opportunities before us.
Then, there’s the second part of this report. “We looked the same to them.” If you see yourself as nothing more than a grasshopper, the natural step is to then believe that others hold this same view of you. Nothing will crush you more than believing others hold you in low esteem. This belief will keep you glued to the sidelines, afraid to step out for fear that if you should fail, your worst suspicions will have been confirmed.
But your value isn’t found in the results or success of your actions. It isn’t determined externally from how you think others see you. Your value comes from within. It’s the divine truth that you are worthy and valued just as you are. The more we can fill our heads with this truth and surround ourselves with others who encourage this belief, the less room there is to believe we’re nothing more than a grasshopper. And the more we’ll find ourselves taking risks instead of watching life pass us by.
This week, take one step to leave behind the grasshopper mentality:
Find a way to daily remind yourself that your value comes from within rather than your external accomplishments.
Spend time with others who see your intrinsic value and help you see it in yourself.
Take the step you know you’re being invited to take, but have been holding back out of fear. It’s in these moments when the power of the Spirit becomes most real to you.
“Eye of the Beholder”
The final sermon in Sermons from Another Dimension is now online. You can listen here. It’s based on The Twilight Zone episode, “Eye of the Beholder.”
Dave