Giants, Grapes and Grasshoppers I Lions, Giants & Bears, But God I Frank Santora

Jun 16, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Giants or Grapes: What Captures Your Gaze?

The spies carried grapes so large it took two men to haul them, yet most fixated on towering giants. Every moment presents a choice: magnify God’s promises or obsess over obstacles. What we dwell on shapes our courage, our decisions, and ultimately our destiny. Like Joshua and Caleb, we must train our eyes to linger on the evidence of God’s faithfulness even when threats loom large. Focus determines whether we inherit abundance or wander in defeat. [14:21]

“Then they told him, ‘We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large…’ Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, ‘Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.’ But the men who had gone up with him said, ‘We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.’” (Numbers 13:27–28, 30–31, NKJV)

Reflection: What “giants” are dominating your thoughts this week? What tangible evidence of God’s promises (your “grapes”) can you intentionally fixate on instead?

Day 2: Your Mind’s Diet: Feeding on Truth or Toxins

Thoughts are not random visitors—they’re meals we choose to consume. Just as the negative spies rehearsed fear, our mental diet shapes our spiritual health. Philippians 4:8 isn’t a suggestion but a survival guide: truth, honor, and virtue fortify the soul. Like taking daily medicine, saturating our minds with Scripture rewires our capacity to hope. Peace grows where toxic thinking is starved. [06:29]

“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things… and the God of peace will be with you.” (Philippians 4:8–9, NKJV)

Reflection: What “junk food” thoughts (anxieties, criticisms, lies) have you indulged this week? What Scripture can you post visibly to redirect your mental diet?

Day 3: From Grasshopper to Giant-Slayer: How Identity Shapes Destiny

The spies’ fatal error wasn’t seeing giants—it was seeing themselves as insignificant. Calling yourself a “grasshopper” isn’t humility; it’s rebellion against how God defines you. You are His masterpiece, designed for battles He’s already equipped you to win. Your words about yourself either chain you to Egypt or propel you toward promise. [36:00]

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10, NKJV)

Reflection: What negative labels do you repeat about yourself? How would your choices change today if you fully believed you were God’s “masterpiece”?

Day 4: Leaving Egypt’s Leeks: Why New Seasons Demand New Mindsets

Craving Egypt’s bland leeks while standing before giant grapes reveals our addiction to familiar bondage. New territory requires upgraded thinking—you can’t steward promise with a slave mentality. Letting go of “daily ration” prayers (just enough to survive) positions you for abundance. God’s best awaits those who stop romanticizing their chains. [23:48]

“Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving… ‘We remember the fish we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic.’” (Numbers 11:4–5, NKJV)

Reflection: What “Egyptian” habits or mindsets comfort you but limit your growth? What bold prayer can you start praying to break small thinking?

Day 5: Team Church: How Community Determines Your Territory

Ten voices spread fear; two ignited faith. Your circle either drags you back to Egypt or fights alongside you for promise. Just as Joshua and Caleb’s alliance preserved their destiny, thriving in God’s family means investing your gifts, not just consuming. The right tribe doesn’t coddle grasshoppers—it forges giant-slayers. [45:04]

“And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together… but exhorting one another.” (Hebrews 10:24–25, NKJV)

Reflection: Are your closest relationships fueling faith or fear? What step can you take this week to actively strengthen your “team church” connections?

Sermon Summary

Numbers 13 sets a drama on the border of promise: giants, grapes, and grasshoppers demand attention, and the heart follows whatever the mind stares at. Caleb says, let us go up at once, because faith acts when God speaks, while the ten magnify the obstacles until they shrink themselves. Proverbs 23:7 underwrites the scene. As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. Philippians 4:8 then drills the practice: think on these things. Framed by peace on both sides, the text makes the mind the meat of the peace sandwich. The mind is the battlefield, and focus fixes the future.

Joshua 1:8 hands agency to the believer. Then you shall make your way prosperous. God supplies the keys, but meditation turns the lock. Even brain science nods along: choice is real, thought-life reshapes life. The tale of two farmers and a water-walking dog exposes the reflex of negativity. Israel models it too. Twelve see the same land. Two carry grapes. Ten carry fear. Where the focus goes, the power flows.

The grasshopper mentality becomes the silent assassin of destiny. Though God parts seas and rains down bread, a mind stuck in Egypt pulls a body back to bondage. Romans 12:2 presses for renewal so the church can prove what God wills. New seasons require new mindsets. Even Moses must evolve. God says, take the rod, but speak to the rock. Yesterday’s rod will not open tomorrow’s walls. Faith in methods must give way to faith in God.

Philippians 4:8 turns to specifics. The text calls a low view of self an evil report, because the masterpiece insults the Master when it trashes itself. Identity must be thought in step with grace, not above grace and not beneath it. God must be thought of as He is. Caleb and Joshua count Him faithful because history proves Him faithful. Worry is simply imagining a bad outcome; prayer and thanksgiving imagine God’s outcome and find His peace. Finally, the difference between conquest and wilderness is not the size of giants but the size of influence. Ten voices steer millions into loss. Two voices, aligned with God, inherit the land. The team someone joins determines the territory they inherit. So the call lands close to home: align with God’s people, connect gifts to His house, and watch destiny wake up while His kingdom advances.

Key Takeaways

1. Focus decides the flow of power Attention sets trajectory. When fear grabs the headlines, faith grows quiet and people feel small. When promise fills the frame, action rises and obstacles take their proper size. Caleb’s urgency shows that delayed obedience gives giants time to talk. [05:18]
2. Meditated Scripture reshapes the mind Joshua 1:8 hands the steering wheel to daily meditation. Chewed truth becomes lived truth, and alignment with God’s Word opens space for obedience. This is not passivity but practiced focus, feeding on promises until they become reflex. [16:56]
3. New seasons need new mindsets God told Moses to speak, not strike. Methods that worked yesterday can become idols if trust shifts from God to tools. Promised-land ground is entered with renewed thinking, fresh obedience, and worship on the lips. [33:35]
4. Identity thinking honors the Maker Calling oneself a grasshopper sounds humble but God calls it an evil report. The canvas should not slander the Artist. Thinking in step with grace refuses both pride and self-contempt and steadies a disciple for battle. [36:00]
5. Choose the right team of voices Destiny often turns on influence. Ten voices soured a nation; two voices kept covenant imagination alive. Alignment with faith-filled people trains the heart to see grapes where others only count giants. [44:31]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:32] - Reading Numbers 13 and the setup
[03:58] - Giants, grapes, and grasshoppers
[05:30] - The mind is the battlefield
[07:28] - Philippians 4:8 and the peace sandwich
[08:52] - Joshua 1:8 and personal agency
[10:18] - Thought-life, science, and soul harmony
[12:05] - Two farmers and a water-walking dog
[13:40] - Spies see the same land, different focus
[16:10] - Practicing focus with promises
[18:05] - Destiny shaped by mindset, not odds
[22:48] - Egypt mentality vs promised-land thinking
[31:30] - Speak to the rock, not strike it
[34:50] - Think good about self, God, and outcomes
[43:55] - Voices, teams, and inherited territory
[46:50] - Team Church and gifts that build destiny
[50:30] - Call to action: contribute, don’t consume

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Numbers 13:23-33 (NKJV)
Philippians 4:8 (NKJV)

Observation questions

In Numbers 13, what two contrasting perspectives did the spies report after seeing the Promised Land? How did their focus differ?
According to Philippians 4:8, what specific qualities are believers instructed to dwell on? How does the sermon describe the structure of this passage as a “peace sandwich”? [11:08]
What practical example did the sermon use to illustrate how negativity can overshadow blessings (e.g., the story of the two farmers and the dog)? [12:05]
How did Moses’ disobedience in striking the rock (Numbers 20) reveal a failure to adapt to God’s new instruction for a new season? [33:35]

Interpretation questions

Why did the ten spies’ report (calling themselves “grasshoppers”) lead to Israel’s 40-year wilderness journey, even though God’s will was for them to enter the land?
How does meditating on Scripture (Joshua 1:8) reshape a person’s mindset, according to the sermon? What makes this act active rather than passive? [16:56]
The sermon calls a “low view of self” an “evil report.” Why might self-deprecation dishonor God, even if it seems humble? [36:00]
Why do new seasons in life require new mindsets, and how can clinging to past methods hinder obedience? [28:09]

Application questions

What “giants” (obstacles) and “grapes” (promises) are you currently facing? How could shifting your focus toward the “grapes” change your perspective or actions this week?
Identify one practical way to “meditate day and night” on a specific Scripture (e.g., writing it on a mirror, setting phone reminders). What promise or truth will you focus on, and why?
Reflect on a recent challenge: Did your initial thoughts align with Philippians 4:8’s qualities (true, noble, pure, etc.)? If not, how could you intentionally redirect your focus next time?
Are there areas where you’ve relied on “yesterday’s rod” (old methods or habits) instead of trusting God’s new direction? What step could you take to obey Him freshly in this season? [33:35]
Who are the “ten voices” (negative influences) or “two voices” (faith-filled influences) in your life? How might aligning with faith-filled community members strengthen your focus on God’s promises? [44:31]
The sermon emphasizes contributing gifts to the church rather than just consuming. What talent, skill, or resource could you offer to serve others in your faith community? [50:40]

Sermon Clips

54s

#TeamShapesDestiny

“``The difference between entering the promised land and dying in the wilderness was not the giants. Well, the reason why is because my life was harder than their life. It might be true. Yes. Some people have more advantages in life than other people, but that's not the reason why some succeed and some don't. Watch this. Watch this. Watch this. The difference was not the size of the giants. The difference was the team that they aligned themselves with, the voices they listened to, and the people they chose to follow. When you listen to or who you listen to will eventually determine what you believe, and what you believe eventually determines the destiny you experience. So the team you are on determines determines the territory you inherit.”

43s

#ThinksDetermineDestiny

“What you think on determines your destiny. Only two of that entire generation make it into the promised land, Joshua and Caleb. Only two experience listen. Listen. Listen. Only two experience the will of God for their life even though it was the will of God for every single one of them to go into the promised land. Pause. Stop. Only two, even though it was the will of God from them all to go into the promised land. Listen to me carefully. Not everything that you experience in your life is the will of God.”

39s

#RenewYourMind

“It's not like God goes, oh, okay. This is what's going on. Let me wait. Let me observe the circumstance, determine what the outcome is gonna be. God sees the beginning from the end. God has visited. God has been God's mind is made up. I don't have to convince God. I don't have to change God's mind. I don't have to do what I have to do is I have to get myself in alignment with everything that God has already for me. Romans chapter 12 verse number two. Be not conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove. And if you look up that word in the original language, it means experience what is that good, perfect, and acceptable will of God.”

56s

#DontJudgeByOutcome

“Some of y'all think that because you got it, God gave it to you. Some of y'all think that you did it your way and it produced what you wanted, so God must be okay. And you're getting tricked by the temporary blessing, and you're missing out on the bigger blessing that God has for you. Because your objective is having your need met instead of honoring God. And so Moses in frustration disobeys but gets the answer anyway. That's a tricky place to be. Because so often we judge by the outcome. God says, he says, take the rod, but speak to the rock.”

47s

#FocusOnGrapes

“The grapes were so big that it took two guys to carry one cluster of grapes on a pole. They had never seen grapes like this. It was amazing. But they also saw giants in the land, the sons of Anak. And and when they came back, the 12 had a choice, meditate, think on giants or grapes. Ten said the dog can't swim. Ten said the giants are too big. Ten said, they're too strong. Ten said, we can't. Two said, the grapes are the biggest grapes that I've ever seen. Let's go right now and take the land. They all saw the same thing. They were all exposed to the same everything. Two chose to meditate on the grapes. 10 chose to meditate on the giants.”

43s

#ActOnFaith

“When God tells you to do something, please don't hesitate. Please don't wait. Please don't wait for the giants to talk you out of it. Please don't wait for people to bring up all the reasons why you can't. When God gives you an instruction, faith takes action. Can you say amen? But the men who had gone up with him said, we are not able to go up against the people for they are stronger than we are. And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out saying the land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants inhabitants.”

44s

#UseTheTools

“See, God's given you the tools. God's given me the tools. God's given us the principles. Behold, I give you the keys to the kingdom. Right? He's given you the principles. He's given you the tools. But you gotta use the tools in order to experience what God has for you. And what you think on is important. Matter of fact, doctor Karen Leaf, in our book Switch On Your Brain, she says this, choice is real and free will exist. You are able to stand outside of yourself, observe your own thinking, consult with God, and change the negative toxic thought or grow the healthy positive thought.”

61s

#SwitchOnYourBrain

“We don't have to stay the way that we are. We don't have to continue doing the things that we are doing. In other words, we choose to get what we think on and to to what we think on, and what we meditate on profoundly affects our intellect, our health, and our peace. It's been studied that seventy five to ninety eight percent of mental, physical, and behavioral illnesses come from one's thought life, and only two to twenty five percent of all those things come from the environment or genes. In other words, we are responsible for a lot of what we experience because we have not yet learned how to win the battle of the mind. How to renew our mind with the word of almighty God.”

49s

#PrayBeyondNeeds

“Some of you are being prevented from going into your destiny because you're satisfied with a daily ration. Listen. Listen. Listen. Some of you are daily ration thinkers. Some of you are daily ration prayers. Here's what your prayer is. Lord, just give me what I need. Lord, just give me what I need. You're a daily ration prayer. I think that's okay to be asking God for what you need, but I never limit my prayers to what I need because that keeps keeps me confined to where I am. What I want God to do is I want God to blow the top off of everything that I'm experiencing in my life because I wanna be used in dimensions for God that I have never experienced before.”

48s

#MindOverEnvironment

“See, some of y'all, you think the issue is the environment. Some of y'all think the issue is the job. Some of y'all think the issue is the marriage. Some of y'all think the issue is the church. See, some of y'all think that the issue is everything that's around you, but you can move from a city, a job, a relationship, a habit, a house, a neighborhood, a school, or whatever, But if your mind doesn't evolve, you'll stay stuck. The grasshopper mentality was not a new mentality. It was an old mentality trying to prevent them from going into new places. And some of you are stuck because your mind has not evolved. Listen, you're married, but you have a single mentality.”

39s

#ChoosePerspective

“And they they got a little boat, and and the positive farmer, he brought his his pet dog, and he was so excited to show his negative farmer friend what the dog can do. And so they go out in this little boat and and this goose comes flying over his head and the positive farmer takes out a shotgun and boom, he knocks it down and the goose fly just drops right on the water. And the dog, he says, watch this, the dog jumps out of the boat. He goes walking on the water. Right? He picks up the goose. He comes back walking on the water, puts it in the boat right in the middle of the boat and he looks at the negative farmer and he says to me, he said, what you think about that? Negative farmer says, I knew it. I knew it. I knew it. That dog can't even swim.”

60s

#GuardYourPeace

“Right? And the meat that determines whether you have a peace sandwich in your life is what you think on. What you think on can disturb your peace or cause your peace to stay settled. We get to choose what we think on. I was reading a story about these two farmers. One was a positive farmer, one was a negative farmer. The positive farmer, they were they were both friends. The positive farmer would thank God for everything. I mean, it would rain. He'd say, thank you, God, for the rain. It's water in the crops. This year, we're gonna have bumper crops. And the negative farmer would say, I mean, I can't believe it's raining this much. It's gonna rot the roots. And then the sun would come out, and the positive farmer, he would say, you know what, man? The sunshine is great. God, thank you for the sunshine. We're getting the our crops are getting the vitamins and the nutrients that they need. It's gonna be it's gonna be a bumper year. And the negative farmer would say, mean, it stays this sunny out, I mean, all the plants are gonna just dry up and burn, and we're not gonna have any harvest. And so one day they decided to go, goose hunting together.”

36s

#BeGrapeNotGrasshopper

“that were carrying the grapes on a pole, I'm just betting it was Joshua and Caleb. Why? Because everybody else, they coming around, did you see them giants? Did you see them giants? Did you see Did you see them giants? And Joshua and Caleb, they carrying that those grapes on a pole, and they're going, look at the size of these grapes. Did you ever see grapes like wait till everybody sees these grapes. See, you get to choose. Are you giants or are you gonna look at the grapes? And the more you look at the giants, the more you become a grasshopper.”

45s

#ChooseToBelieve

“By the way, scripture specifically says in relation to the grapes, and we quoted, it took two guys to carry one cluster of grapes on a pole. Now the scripture doesn't tell us this, but if I was a betting man. If I was a betting man, I'm not a betting man because I'm a believer in Jesus Christ. I don't do foolery with my money because I'm a steward of Jesus Christ. I'm I'm not I'm not betting on the Knicks to win, I'm just hoping, pulling for the Knicks to win. Because because if my bet doesn't go right, it spoils my moment. Oh, I'm talking to somebody right now. But anyway, it says that these two guys and I'm betting the two guys”

40s

#SyncSpiritAndMind

“In other words, the way that you walk and the way that you receive everything that God has for you is if you feed your mind and if you get your mind in alignment with the word of God. The reason why so many people struggle to live holy is because their spirit is saved, but their mind is not. So their flesh wins because their mind and their flesh are hooked up with one another. And every time their flesh says, does it do this, their mind says, okay. But what you really gotta do is you gotta get your spirit and your mind synced up with one another. So when your flesh says, do this, you say,”

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Giants, Grapes and Grasshoppers I Lions, Giants & Bears, But God I Frank Santora

Devotional

Day 1: Giants or Grapes: What Captures Your Gaze?

Day 2: Your Mind’s Diet: Feeding on Truth or Toxins

Day 3: From Grasshopper to Giant-Slayer: How Identity Shapes Destiny

Day 4: Leaving Egypt’s Leeks: Why New Seasons Demand New Mindsets

Day 5: Team Church: How Community Determines Your Territory

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Giants, Grapes and Grasshoppers I Lions, Giants & Bears, But God I Frank Santora

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