Exodus 23:30 By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.
World War II ended in 1945. However, many people who have studied the history would say that Hitler lost the war no later than 1942. In 1941, when Hitler was making the push for Moscow and other major Russian cities, he made the same mistake that Napoleon had made 100 years before him. That mistake was that he outpaced his supply line. He was stuck in Russia in the dead of winter. The Germans froze, starved, and were eventually outgunned. Hitler, though he thought he would win, got away from his supply line. The trucks, trains, and planes bringing supplies from Germany to the front were overextended.
In Exodus 23, God is talking about the land of promise. God says to Israel, “I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee.” God says that He would not drive out the Canaanites in one year, but it would be over a period of time. If the Israelites suddenly razed every city, the beasts of the field would become a menace and the Israelites would not have the advantage.
Verse 30 says, “By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.” There was a reason for the pace. God later says about this land that He would give them, “I will set thy bounds.” God controlled both the time and the territory. God said, “I will drive them out little by little, and I will set the bounds.” It was not an “if” question; it was a “when” and “how” question. You can learn something very important from history and from the Children of Israel: do not outpace your supply line.
Sometimes in life we have ambitions that may not be wrong, but we get out ahead of God either in time or territory. God is in control of both of those things. We can become short-sighted by the walls ahead of us or we can become greedy as Achan did with what lies within the walls. We can become either fearful or impatient, and ultimately your supplier will call the shots. If your supplier is money, another person, or your own ambition, then that will call the shots.
Now God made you, and God knows your portion. When Israel went into Canaan, God had an inheritance, a portion, for each tribe. God does the same for you today. When it comes to both time and space, don’t outpace your supply line. Live by faith. Launch out when God says go. But, don’t get ahead of God. A good thing is a good thing at the right time, and a good thing at the wrong time is not a good thing. Today, follow God’s leading, God’s pace, and know that He is sufficient. Don’t outpace your supply line.