Caleb, King, and the Promised Land

An essay about courage, convictions, and confidence

This week, we celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday. He would have been 94 years old. Although he only walked this earth for 39 years, his discernment, wisdom, and confidence were way beyond his years. We only had him a short time, and in that time, we bared witness to him standing on his convictions. King’s courage came from the confidence he had in God. He was so confident in God that he was berated, mistreated, and even sent to jail for the sake of “The Promised Land.” The day before his life was unjustly taken, King orated the speech, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop.” It’s clear that he held on to the promises of God’s Word; the promise of salvation and the promise of heaven. Here are the last few words from the speech :

“Well, I don’t know what will happen now; we’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn’t matter with me now because I’ve been to the mountaintop.  And I don’t mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life—longevity has its place.…