Exodus 16:2 In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron.
I am a planner, primarily, I think, because I don’t want to feel inconvenienced. I plan out and secure what I think I’ll need so that the yawning ache of want will not touch me. When I do feel the sting of want, I react much the same as the Israelites, whining and complaining. And while this tendency may have gotten a smidge better as I’ve aged, I am truly ashamed to say it is something with which I still struggle mightily at times.
Exodus 16:3 The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the LORD’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into the desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”
I suppose that’s one of the reasons today’s verses strike me so. Moses rightfully calls the Israelites on their grumbling and points out the important fact that it is actually the LORD that they are grumbling against. If I trust that the LORD will provide my needs—and I do—them when I grumble about being in want, He is the One I’m grumbling against. But that I not my intent. Jesus, Help me.
Exodus 16:7a “…in the morning you will see the glory of the LORD, because He has heard your grumbling against Him….”
Lord, Thank You for this day, this scripture, this revelation. It stings to see that I am behaving in this manner, but Your intention is not to shame me but to remove the barriers separating us so that You can draw me closer. Thank You for pointing out this tendency. Help me to correct it so that I can draw closer to You. Amen.
Exodus 16:7b “…Who are we, that you should grumble against us?”
Have a blessed day.
My faith, my life, my teaching–it's all a work in progress.