Why Didn’t Moses Lead God’s People into the Holy Land?

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That’s right. Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, and all through the desert, but Moses did not lead God’s people into the Holy Land.

Why not?

That’s the subject of a spiritual conundrum posed by darcydee:

My question to you is, “Why was Moses refused entrance into the Holy Land, after he led God’s people there?”

Thanks for the great question, darcydee! It points to some fascinating stories in the Bible. And those stories point to some wonderful insights on the mental and emotional changes we must pass through in order to reach our own “holy land” of spiritual adulthood.

The short answer to your question is that Moses, because of his character and his cultural and spiritual significance, was the right person to lead the people of Israel out of slavery in Egypt; but he was the wrong person to lead them into the Holy Land.

Why was Moses the wrong person to lead God’s people into the Holy Land?

As great a leader as he was, like every human being Moses had his character flaws. He was not allowed into the Holy Land because of his:

  1. Lack of trust in God
  2. Grumbling and complaining
  3. Failure to follow God’s commands exactly
  4. Grandstanding and stealing God’s glory in front of the people

These failings in Moses’ character all came out at a place near Kadesh (also called Kadesh Barnea), just south of Palestine. This place came to be called Meribah (“quarreling”) because of a certain incident that took place there.

That’s where God commanded Moses for a second time to bring water out of a rock for the thirsty people.

And where, instead of following God’s simple instructions, Moses made a big production of it in front of the people.

And thus where God told Moses and his brother Aaron that because they had neither trusted God nor given God the glory, they would never set foot in the Holy Land (Numbers 20:12).

Let’s take a closer look.

For more on Moses’ merits and demerits, please click here to read on.

Repentance: The Unpopular Partner of Forgiveness

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If the various Christian virtues were running against each other in a high school popularity contest, love would probably win.

And forgiveness would probably be in the top five. Who knows, forgiveness might even beat out faith and hope for second place!

Forgiveness is so sweet . . . so nice . . . . Who doesn’t love forgiveness? As the old saying goes, “To err is human, to forgive, divine.” Forgiveness is the pretty, popular girl that everyone is always swarming around and wanting to be friends with.

Repentance, on the other hand, is that ugly, awkward kid nobody likes. “Ewww! Get away from me! I’m not voting for you!”

Yeah . . . repentance would definitely place near the bottom in a popularity contest.

But you know how sometimes the most unlikely kids from high school end out marrying each other and living happily ever after?

What if forgiveness got married to repentance?

“Oh come on! That ugly repentance kid could never land a hottie like forgiveness! Dream on!”

But it’s true!

Repentance and forgiveness are inseparable partners.

For more on the relationship between forgiveness and repentance, please click here to read on.

Charlie Sheen: Man and Myth

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Charlie Sheen

Charlie Sheen

Charlie Sheen. He’s old news, isn’t he?

Yes, he has a new gig as lead actor on the FX cable TV series “Anger Management.” But the one or two million viewers who tune in for each episode of his new show can’t hold a candle to the fourteen or fifteen million who used to tune in for each episode of his old show, CBS broadcast TV sitcom “Two and a Half Men.” Sheen played its lead character: TV jingle writer, womanizer, and perpetual drunk Charlie Harper.

In 2011, Sheen was all over the news for his very public meltdown in the midst of drugs, alcohol, and violence, and his subsequent firing from his position as the best paid actor on TV, starring in the #1 ranked television comedy.

Sheen predicted that without him, “Two and a Half Men” would tank. However, with Ashton Kutcher replacing Sheen as the lead actor in a new role as Internet billionaire Walden Schmidt, and with Jon Cryer continuing his co-star role as Alan Harper, and Angus T. Jones continuing in a recurring role as Alan’s son Jake, the show has kept right on attracting almost as many viewers as it did in its “glory days” with Charlie Sheen.

Sheen has been on the talk show circuit lately, presumably to plug his new role in “Anger Management.” But the talk is all about “Two and a Half Men,” and Sheen’s meltdown and firing from that cherry role.

How does an actor get himself fired from the top job in the industry?

The answer lies in the difference between the onscreen myth, Charlie Harper, and the real-life man, Charlie Sheen.

For more on Charlie the myth and Charlie the man, please click here to read on.

Don’t Look Back! Press Onwards and Upwards!

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Nostalgia never seems to go out of style.

  • Twenty- and thirty-somethings relive their carefree days of high school and college.
  • Forty- and fifty-somethings yearn for their years of young adulthood, before their shoulders were weighed down with heavy burdens of responsibility.
  • Sixty- and seventy-somethings pine for the decades when the adventures and achievements of life lay ahead of them instead of behind them.
  • Old war buddies mourn the era when the men were brave, the women were strong, and the issues were clear.

It’s a terrible way to live.

Yes, it is good to remember the past. But we were never meant to live there.

Yes, our past brought us to the present. But the present is moving toward the future, not toward the past.

Our eyes are placed in the front of our head, not in the back. We humans are designed to look forwards, not backwards.

Within the ancient pages of the Bible there are many stories and metaphors illustrating the damage that is done when we look back and live in the past. Let’s take a deeper look at a few of them, and see what wisdom they hold for our life today . . . and for our future.

For the Bible’s take on looking back, please click here to read on.

Beyonce and Jay-Z Reveal the Secret: How to Start a Lasting Marriage

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Beyonce and Jay-Z performing together

Beyonce and Jay-Z performing together

Hollywood marriages are not known for their longevity. But not all celebrities get it wrong. Though some stars’ marriages last only a few years . . . or months, others’ marriages last fifty years or more.

What’s the secret? Why do some celebrity marriages go the distance, while others quickly crash and burn?

Various theories have been put forward for short-lived “Hollywood marriages”:

  • Showbiz marriages are all about publicity, glitz, and glamor
  • Celebrities are spoiled, egotistical overgrown children
  • Celebrities are promiscuous and unfaithful
  • Living in the spotlight puts tremendous pressure on a marriage

For the celebrity marriages that are short-lived, there may be some truth to these theories. However, there are also deeper factors at work—factors that affect all marriages, not just celebrity marriages.

Let’s take a look at just one of those factors . . . but a very important one:

How is the relationship formed in the first place? What stages does it go through on the way to marriage?

That’s where Beyoncé and Jay-Z have a secret to share.

For Beyonce’s take on starting a lasting marriage, please click here to read on.

Is There Really a Hell? What is it Like?

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Will God Damn Me to Hell if I Break the Commandments?

Aw, hell!

A fire-and-brimstone preacher terrifies his listeners with lurid tales of the scorching punishment awaiting them in hell if they don’t repent from their sins.

Perhaps those preachers have had some success in scaring their people into better behavior. But can a modern, rational person really believe in all those flames and pitchforks? And is God really such a you-know-what as to condemn people to eternal torture for breaking his commandments?

In a word: No.

God loves everyone, saint and sinner alike (see Matthew 5:43–45), and is always working to bring every single one of us out of hell.

How could there be a hell, then?

The surprising answer: because many of us insist on having a hell. Hell is not a place we are sent after we die if we’ve broken God’s commandments. It is a state of mind and life that we create within and around ourselves when we put our own pleasure, possessions, and power first—and don’t care who we have to step on to get them.

If this is the kind of life we love, we will choose to go to hell after we die because we’d rather be in hell than in heaven.

If you can’t quite believe this, please click here to read on.

Money Can’t Buy Happiness . . . But Service Can

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It’s a commonplace that money can’t buy you happiness. Studies show that people who win big in the lottery end out no happier than if they didn’t win.

Razan Shalab Al-Sham meets with local Syrian councils in Gaziantep, Turkey - NPR photo

Razan Shalab Al-Sham meets with local Syrian councils in Gaziantep, Turkey

Razan Shalab Al-Sham had plenty of money. She grew up as the privileged daughter of a very wealthy Syrian family. According to a recent story about her on National Public Radio, Al-Sham had no awareness of poverty until war tore apart her country in the wake of the Syrian uprising. “In all my life,” she said, “I didn’t feel that I should care about poor people or help them or stay in their villages. . . . I didn’t know the meaning of poor people until the revolution started.”

Al-Sham’s plan in life was to teach English literature. Fair enough.

But all that changed when the revolution began. Now, Al-Sham risks her life to bring help and aid to those who are seeking to end one-family rule in Syria. In the process, she interacts with many ordinary and poor Syrians, helping refugees and local town officials alike.

Why would this scion of wealth forsake her position of privilege and rub elbows with people so far below her on the socioeconomic ladder?

For more about money, service, and happiness, please click here to read on.