Enough is Enough

Today’s Passage – Deuteronomy 3 – 5; Proverbs 2

(Second Milers also read – 1 Corinthians 1 – 4; memorize Revelation 22:17)

“But the LORD was wroth with me for your sakes, and would not hear me: and the LORD said unto me, Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter.” – (Deuteronomy 3:26)

“For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” – (2 Corinthians 12:8-9)

When we were kids, we used to drive our parents crazy asking for things. We would keep asking over and over again until they finally acquiesced to our request; or until they got angry and said, “enough is enough!” In our passage today we have Moses asking the Lord to change His mind about letting Moses enter into the land. Moses had been leading the nation for over 40 years, delivering them up to the border of the Promised Land. He had put up with all of their problems and complaints. You would think that God would have cut Moses some slack, and let him see what he had been working toward for a good portion of his life. But God had already told Moses “no”. God is not like us, either: when He says “no” He means no. God told Moses, “Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter.” He basically told Moses to quit asking. He wanted Moses to be content with God’s will, whether or not it seemed fair.

Paul had a similar situation in the New Testament. He had a thorn in the flesh that He wanted God to take away from him. He asked God three times to remove it. God finally told Paul to stop asking. He wanted Paul to be content with the thorn, which for some reason was the will of God. He told Him that He would give him grace to go with the thorn, and that He should be content with that, because it is sufficient.

I think it is just human nature for us to keep asking for things. By the way, there is nothing wrong with asking; and God even wants us to keep asking over and over again for the same thing. But eventually there will come a point when He will answer. He will either grant you the desire; or He will tell you “no”. When He tells you “no”, quit asking; and be content with His will coupled with His grace. If you really needed what you were asking for, he would have given it to you. Be satisfied with what you do get, and know that God knows what is best. Perhaps someday we will understand a little better why God answered the way He did; but for now, just trust Him.

Note – The picture above is of Mt. Pisgah, which is the name of the mountain from which God showed Moses the Promised Land. Unfortunately, the Mt. Pisgah pictured above is in North Carolina, near Asheville. Oh well, it is a beautiful picture anyway.


Posted in Thoughts from Deuteronomy by with 3 comments.
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Katelyn Erickson
Katelyn Erickson
13 years ago

All I can say is WOW! Today’s scripture was AWESOME!
Chapter 4 especially had so many wonderful reminders of the mighty power of our Heavenly Father.
Thank God for His beautiful Love Letter to His Children!

Meredith King
Meredith King
13 years ago

It doesn’t seem fair, does it? After all that Moses endured for God, to be held back from the promised land seems harsh and unnecessary, at least from our limited perspective. How often do we say or think that infamous saying “Life’s not fair”? We protest aloud or silently, wondering what the purpose this ‘thorn’ has in our lives. Strangely enough, I was dealing with a situation that certainly seemed unfair to me this morning. It occurred to me at that time that I was totally blind to what my future holds. This seemingly unfair delay could very well prove to be something that would benefit me, if I could only trust God and look at things from a broader viewpoint. It’s easy to forget that God does use negative situations for good. He is all-powerful, right? Perhaps Moses was shielded from something harmful when God told him no. It’s not ours to know what would have happened to us had God given us our desire. It’s very likely that what we want may not always be in our best interest. Another saying goes, ‘When God shuts a window, He opens a door’. Whether we feel our circumstances are undeserved or unfair, we can know that life IS fair to all mankind in that we all go through struggles and pain. We all have our turn at heartache. Take the opportunity to thank God as we grow with each painful lesson He teaches us. God can create positive outcomes from negative circumstances. Let’s keep our hearts full of love for each other and allow our distress to teach us compassion for others. Have a great day!

Alisemary
Alisemary
13 years ago
Reply to  Meredith King

Amen:)

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