Read: Deuteronomy 34
Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo. (v. 1)
It’s hard to see where God is leading us sometimes. We are all characters caught up in a story that branches from creation and ends in new creation, yet we are not the author—we cannot see where the plot is going.
I imagine this is how Moses felt after he and the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years, coming at last to the very brink of the promised land, only to discover that Moses would not be allowed to cross into it (v. 4). Is this how he expected his story to end? The stalwart leader of a band of exiles dying before he can enter this new Eden, this land “flowing with milk and honey” (Exod. 3:8)?
At first, this end makes no sense. We all have our own “promised lands”—a promotion at work, a relationship, a certain financial status. When the plot leads somewhere we didn’t expect, we wonder what story God could possibly be spinning. But here’s the surprise twist. Moses didn’t argue with God. In fact, Deuteronomy 33 records his blessings to the people of Israel, and the end of chapter 34 tells us that leadership was passed to Joshua, who was “full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him” (v. 9). The ending of this story is not that Moses didn’t enter the promised land. It’s that his story ended faithfully, with God, up on the mountain.
As you pray, ask for the courage to trust even when you cannot see the end of your story.
Justin Kuiper is a student from Holland, MI, studying English literature at Hope College. His own writing explores the many intersections of faith, storytelling, and the created order. Justin is a life-long soccer fan and plays on the Hope College soccer team.
