“To your descendants I will give this land.” — Genesis 12:7
This is my 32nd year in the faith but it wasn’t until today that I realized the promise of Canaan didn’t start with Moses, it started with Abraham. Don’t judge me! I mean I knew Isreal was the nation promised Abraham, but I had never quite connected Canaan as the land God specifically promised him.
So basically, the trajectory was that God gave the promise to Abraham, Moses activated the Promise through deliverance, setting up the divine structure, and leading the way to the promised land. Joshua on the other hand executed the promise through entry, conquest, and distribution of the land to the Israelites.
I couldn’t help but see the parallel between the Abraham – Moses – Joshua order and the journey of every business. Every business is at either of these stages:
- The Vision Phase (Abraham) where God reveals what is possible before you yet have the capacity to build it. It is the early stage of conceiving the idea and making preliminary decisions.
- The Formation Phase (Moses); where vision is translated into structure. This is where you are refining your offer repeatedly, managing finances carefully, building operations, and learning leadership the hard way. This is the phase where many business owners question their existence! Forming habits, forcing structure, aligning with design, these things test you as an entrepreneur. Even God did not leave Moses to assume structure, it had to be according to design, and the congregation had to also align.
“See that you make them according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.” — Exodus 25:40
You will have employers stuck in their ways and unwilling to accept your modus operandi, suppliers that eat to compromise on your standards, or even your target market not appreciating the value you offer.
- The Possession Phase (Joshua); where preparation meets execution, and you step into the reality of what was promised. It is in this phase that your product/offer is validated, revenue becomes consistent, opportunities begin to open faster. At this point you are no longer guessing, you know what works and you are moving with clarity, and the market starts to recognise and appreciate your value.
For a business to be successful it must go through these three phases. Entrepreneurship is no respecter of persons, it doesn’t care who you are, or whatindustry you’re in, you must pay your dues to have right of passage.
“To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck what is planted;” Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
A time to conceive the business idea, a time to build capacity and develop structure and processes, and a time to scale and enjoy the reward of success.
I believe strongly that as kingdom entrepreneurs, how we manage the Moses phase of our business goes a long way to determine the impact we have on the lives God has predestined for us to bless. God gave us that business idea because He already worked out the business end to end, and He knows the actions that must be taken to get us to that expected end. God has to be actively involved in every detail of this thing we are building, but the problem with many kingdompreneurs is that we treat our businesses like “my thing” instead of God’s thing, and so we don’t think we should rely on His influence. The Moses stage should not be winged, neither should it be done based wholly on human experience, it should be divinely guided.
When you are faithful in design, God will be faithful in reward, the Joshua phase will be inevitable. I particularly love how Ephesians 6:13b puts it “… and having done all, to stand.” Having wrestled against principalities, against powers, having painstakingly built structure for your business, having aligned with God’s blueprint for your business, having done ALL, to stand! To stand in the reality of the promise He gave to you.
There comes a time when all that planning, working, and structure begin to pay off. It is a divine principle that holds true, that when you do the work, the universe will align itself in your favour.
“If the clouds are full of rain, They empty themselves upon the earth.” Ecclesiastes 11:3
Warning: Don’t Get Stuck in Moses
Know when to scale. Don’t over analyze and over strategize. Be perceptive. Understand the seasons, and act in faith. Have the ability to discern the best time to employ skilled people, raise funding, get a partner, or whatever action you need to take that will lunge you into your promise. When God is saying, “Now… arise and go”, Don’t say “no, there are giants on the other side”!
God said to Joshua
“Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them—the children of Israel.” Joshua 1:2
Know when an era has ended. Know when to pivot!
In conclusion, learn to discern the season you are in, and honour it fully. Don’t rush it, don’t resist it, and don’t waste it. Because every phase carries within it the exact tools, discipline, and capacity you will need for the next. When you honour the process, you are being prepared and strengthened for what is ahead. So that when the promise finally opens up to you, you don’t just enter it, you can STAND in it, build in it, and sustain it… without being overwhelmed by the very thing you once prayed for.
