Wholly Follow

In this episode of Wifey Wednesdays, Emily Hatfield explores what it truly means to wholly follow the Lord. Looking at the powerful example of Caleb, we’re challenged to consider whether our hearts are fully aligned with God — even when standing alone.

What It Means to Wholly Follow the Lord

1. Trusting God Over Opposition

Caleb believed no obstacle was greater than God’s power — not fortified cities, not giants, not fear. When others saw impossibility, Caleb saw God’s provision.

We are reminded:

• The One who is in us is greater than the one in the world.
• Jesus has overcome the world.
• We do not follow in fear — we follow in faith.

2. Standing Firm — Even Among God’s People

Sometimes opposition doesn’t come from the world, but from fellow believers.

Caleb stood against the majority report — even when it came from men who should have trusted God.

Wholly following may look like:

• Refusing to join gossip.
• Questioning unbiblical teaching with humility.
• Choosing obedience over popularity.
• Living differently than other families.
• Saying no when others say yes — and yes when others say no.We follow the Lord — not the crowd.

3. Serving Faithfully for a Lifetime

In Joshua 14:6–12, Caleb is 85 years old and still asking for the hill country filled with giants.

He declares he is just as strong and ready for battle as he was at 40.

Wholly following the Lord means:

• No spiritual retirement.
• No “I did my time” mentality.
• No slowing zeal because of age or experience.
• Lifelong faithfulness.As long as we have breath, we serve.

A Warning Example: Solomon

Not everyone finishes well.

Solomon is described in 1 Kings 11:6 as one who “did not wholly follow the Lord.” Despite wisdom and blessing, Solomon allowed divided loyalties.

In contrast, David — though imperfect — is remembered as one who wholly followed the Lord:

• He repented when confronted.
• He fought when called.
• He waited for God’s timing.
• He aligned his heart with God’s.Wholly following is not about perfection — it’s about direction.

In a culture that:

• Celebrates following your heart
• Rewards popularity
• Competes for your attentionBe a Caleb.

Stand firm when it’s hard.
Trust God when it’s unpopular.
Serve Him when no one else does.

There is no such thing as a sideline Christian. The wilderness generation shows us where that leads. But stepping up in faith? That’s a Caleb move. A David move.

And that’s the heart God desires.

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Creators and Guests

Host

Emily Hatfield

Author, Podcaster, Ladies Speaker

What is Wifey Wednesdays?

Wifey Wednesdays: A show for women that focuses on the Titus 2 principle: learning to love our husband and our children, and being the keepers at home that God intends for us to be. Wifey Wednesdays, hosted by Emily Hatfield, is released every Wednesday.

Hello and welcome to Wifey Wednesdays, a podcast for women who are seeking to be the best wives they can be. I’m your host, Emily Hatfield, and this is the show where the plan is always to do things God’s way, especially our marriages.

On today’s episode, we are going to be looking at what it means to wholly follow the Lord, and to do that I want to look at an Old Testament example.

In the book of Numbers, we are introduced to a man named Caleb, who is going to become pretty famous in the narrative because he’s quite different than the men he finds himself paired up with.

In chapter 13, Caleb is chosen from the tribe of Judah to go and spy out the land that God has promised to give to the people. He, Joshua son of Nun from the tribe of Benjamin, and ten other guys go into the land of Canaan and spend forty days spying it out - gathering big old clusters of fruit as they go.

When they return, you know what happens. Ten of the spies start whining and complaining, discouraging all of the people by telling them that the inhabitants of the land are too much for them to be able to conquer. Caleb and Joshua say otherwise. They know that God has given them the land, and they know that no power on earth could possibly stand up against Him. But, the people latched onto the bad report of the ten.

In Deuteronomy, as Moses is recounting the events of Numbers - here’s what he says. Starting in Deuteronomy 1:34, “And the Lord heard your words and was angered, and He swore, ‘Not one of these men of this evil generation shall see the good land that I swore to give to your fathers, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh. He shall see it, and to him and to his children I will give the land on which he has trodden, because he has wholly followed the Lord.”

What an amazing thing to have said about you! In the midst of an evil generation of complainers and unbelievers, Caleb wholly followed the Lord.

What did that look like?

It looked like knowing that no opposition was stronger than God’s provision. Big people literally standing in the land that the Lord has promised - doesn’t matter. Even if those people are the greatest warriors the earth has ever known, Caleb knows that if He is on the Lord’s side, he will prevail.

It looked like standing up to people who should have been on his side but weren’t. Here were ten men who were also God’s people, from the chosen tribes of God, but they were unwilling to go and do the things that the Lord said. Caleb stands up to their discouraging words and says - yes we can! We can go. Even though they were dissenting, Caleb was standing firm in the Lord’s promises.

It looked like not retiring from God’s service. When you come to the book of Joshua, Caleb is still going strong. When they get to Gilgal under Joshua’s leadership, here’s what Caleb says: “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea concerning you and me. I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him word again as it was in my heart. But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I wholly followed the Lord my God. And Moses swore on that day, saying, ‘surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the Lord my God.’ And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive just as He said, these forty-five years since the time the Lord spoke this word to Moses while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day 85 years old. I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me, my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going out. So now give me this hill country of which the Lord spoke on that day, for you heard on that day how the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities. It may be that the Lord will be with me, and I shall drive them out just as the Lord said.” - Joshua 14:6-12.

Wow. What an amazing man of God.

Can’t we follow in Caleb’s footsteps?

Following in Caleb’s steps means….Knowing that no matter how big, bad, and scary the world looks - God has promised that He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world. Jesus says, don’t be afraid - I’ve overcome the world. We don’t have to fear wholly following the Lord because He has promised to never leave us or forsake us.

Can’t we follow in Caleb’s footsteps of standing up to those who should be on our side but aren’t? There are going to be people who claim to be God’s people who just don’t act like…who don’t follow His commands. Instead of going along with their bad attitudes, sinful behaviors, or misguided leadership, we can be like Caleb - wholly following the Lord instead of the majority around us. It may mean we have to bow out of a conversation that a group of gossiping women are having. It may mean having to go to the elders and ask questions and submit concerns. It may mean having to do your own searching the scriptures in order to see whether the things the preacher is saying are so. It may mean choosing to do things differently than other families because you are convinced by scripture that a different direction is needed. It may mean saying no to what friends are planning to go watch, or saying yes to things people deem unimportant or a waste of time. Sometimes, other Christians ought to be championing the things of God and they just aren’t….but we can’t let that deter us. We must keep wholly following the Lord even if no one else goes with us.

Following in Caleb’s footsteps means we are never going to stop working for the Lord. There will be none of this “I did my time” mindset where I stop teaching or growing or reaching or serving. I will not use my age as a means of stopping service. I will not use the length of time I’ve been following Jesus to slow my zeal or my work ethic. Instead, so long as I have breath in my lungs, I will do what the Lord has commanded, just like Caleb.

If I want it to be said of me that I have wholly followed the Lord, I’m going to orient my heart the way Caleb did. I’m going to constantly seek to be doing the Lord’s work - doing things the Lord’s way, even if no one else is. Regardless of the opposition I come up against, I’m going to be invested in doing’s the work that God has laid before me. I will keep teaching. I will keep reaching out. I will keep seeking to honor Him with every part of my life - with my words and my actions. I will seek to encourage those around me instead of discourage; I will keep myself on the strait and narrow instead of being led toward the broad path that many many people might try to persuade me to walk…even people that should know better…even people who ought to be on the Lord’s side themselves.

It’s easy to slip away from wholly following. It’s what Solomon did. 1 Kings 11:6 says “Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and did not wholly follow the Lord, as David his father has done. “Here we see another set of examples to learn from. Solomon, who knew better and had a great example to follow, went the way of all the people around him, mostly following after the hundreds of women he placed ahead of the Lord. Whereas David…he wasn’t perfect by any stretch, but he wholly followed the Lord. When confronted with sin, he repented. When given the choice to sit on the sidelines with everyone else or go fight for the Lord, he fought. When given the opportunity to go against God’s anointed to or wait for God’s timing, he waited. This is what wholly following looks like. Not making it about you and your desires and your timeline, but making it to where your heart is fully aligned with God’s.

In a world where chasing after the popular thing is easiest and most celebrated, be a Caleb who stands firm on the Lord’s side. In a world where following your own heart is encouraged, follow only in the steps of God. In a world where every single influencer would pay to have your attention, let God be the greatest influence of all - the One leading you in the direction that is best for your soul. Let’s not be sideline Christians…I’m not really sure that’s a thing anyway. Staying on the sidelines is what led to everyone dying in the wilderness. But stepping up and stepping out — that’s a Caleb move, a David move. And that’s the kind of heart God wants. A heart that will step out in faith and follow Him completely, trusting His care and guidance; resting in His protection and grace.

May it be said of each of us - we wholly followed the Lord. When things were easy and when things were hard. When it was popular and when it wasn’t. When we were in a crowd and when we were all alone. Wholly following God is the goal…May He strengthen us for that journey.

Thank you so much for joining me for another episode of Wifey Wednesdays, and I hope that you’ll be back with me next week as we discuss what it means to wholly trust. Thanks again for listening, and until next time remember - love God, love your husband.