This looks like an absurd statement, especially in our day of emphasis on our individual independence. You might be thinking that whoever would say such a thing is a moron, and that, in fact, this is an oxymoron!
The verses at the end of Numbers 9 describe how God led the children of Israel in the wilderness. Verses 15-16 tell when this unusual method of leading them began:
Now on the day that the tabernacle was raised up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the Testimony; from evening until morning it was above the tabernacle like the appearance of fire. So it was always: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night.
The next seven verses give step by step details of the timing of God’s leading at His command via the movement of the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night. At any time, He could have them journey and at any time He could have them pitch their tents. According to the text, they could stay just one day up to a year. They could start or stop in the day or the night. The passage describes the various scenarios of stopping and staying and leaving and journeying. Clearly, the children of Israel were totally dependent on God for the timing of this trip through the wilderness. I can hear the children asking their parents, “Are we almost there?” To some, I’m sure this was frustrating, but in reality, God knew best for them when they should move and when they should stop and stay. Do you think He knows best when we should move and when we should stop and stay?
David made a significant statement in Psalm 40:8 related to being dependent on God’s will: I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my heart. Fanny Crosby made a similar statement in her hymn “Blessed Assurance”. Verse two starts with the statement “Perfect submission, perfect delight!” Yes, total dependence brings total delight when God is the One on whom we are dependent!