Good day dear friends.
We continue to trust the Lord for all the needs we have before us. Louise Pollard is in need of our prayers. She is at Hays Nursing Facility here in town.
Funeral plans for Robin Brown have been finalized: Visitation on Wednesday night from 6 until 8 p.m. Funeral service at 1 p.m. at First United Methodist Church. We're asking our ushers to please be early to help with the crowd we're anticipating. Please continue to hold Del, Kapp, Penny, Eric and their families in your prayers.
What act or event in your history stands out as something very special and powerful? As we read today's scripture hear how strongly the Jews feel about how God provided for them during their Exodus.
Tuesday: Read Exodus 16:1-31. Who is providing nourishment for the people in the wilderness? What work did the people have to do to receive this? How can you explain all that happens in this passage? What message does it speak to your heart?
Here is The Message version of this passage:
1 On the fifteenth day of the second month after they had left Egypt, the whole company of Israel moved on from Elim to the Wilderness of Sin which is between Elim and Sinai. 2 The whole company of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron there in the wilderness. 3 The Israelites said, "Why didn't God let us die in comfort in Egypt where we had lamb stew and all the bread we could eat? You've brought us out into this wilderness to starve us to death, the whole company of Israel!" 4 God said to Moses, "I'm going to rain bread down from the skies for you. The people will go out and gather each day's ration. I'm going to test them to see if they'll live according to my Teaching or not. 5 On the sixth day, when they prepare what they have gathered, it will turn out to be twice as much as their daily ration." 6 Moses and Aaron told the People of Israel, "This evening you will know that it is God who brought you out of Egypt; 7 and in the morning you will see the Glory of God. Yes, he's listened to your complaints against him. You haven't been complaining against us, you know, but against God." 8 Moses said, "Since it will be God who gives you meat for your meal in the evening and your fill of bread in the morning, it's God who will have listened to your complaints against him. Who are we in all this? You haven't been complaining to us - you've been complaining to God!" 9 Moses instructed Aaron: "Tell the whole company of Israel: 'Come near to God. He's heard your complaints.'" 10 When Aaron gave out the instructions to the whole company of Israel, they turned to face the wilderness. And there it was: the Glory of God visible in the Cloud. 11 God spoke to Moses, 12 "I've listened to the complaints of the Israelites. Now tell them: 'At dusk you will eat meat and at dawn you'll eat your fill of bread; and you'll realize that I am God, your God.'"
13 That evening quail flew in and covered the camp and in the morning there was a layer of dew all over the camp. 14 When the layer of dew had lifted, there on the wilderness ground was a fine flaky something, fine as frost on the ground. 15 The Israelites took one look and said to one another, man-hu (What is it?). They had no idea what it was. 16 And these are God's instructions: 'Gather enough for each person, about two quarts per person; gather enough for everyone in your tent.'" 17 The People of Israel went to work and started gathering, some more, some less, 18 but when they measured out what they had gathered, those who gathered more had no extra and those who gathered less weren't short - each person had gathered as much as was needed. 19 Moses said to them, "Don't leave any of it until morning." 20 But they didn't listen to Moses. A few of the men kept back some of it until morning. It got wormy and smelled bad. And Moses lost his temper with them. 21 They gathered it every morning, each person according to need. Then the sun heated up and it melted.
22 On the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, about four quarts per person. Then the leaders of the company came to Moses and reported. 23 Moses said, "This is what God was talking about: Tomorrow is a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to God. Whatever you plan to bake, bake today; and whatever you plan to boil, boil today. Then set aside the leftovers until morning." 24 They set aside what was left until morning, as Moses had commanded. It didn't smell bad and there were no worms in it. 25 Moses said, "Now eat it; this is the day, a Sabbath for God. You won't find any of it on the ground today. 26 Gather it every day for six days, but the seventh day is Sabbath; there won't be any of it on the ground." 27 On the seventh day, some of the people went out to gather anyway but they didn't find anything. 28 God said to Moses, "How long are you going to disobey my commands and not follow my instructions? 29 Don't you see that God has given you the Sabbath? So on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. So, each of you, stay home. Don't leave home on the seventh day." 30 So the people quit working on the seventh day. 31 The Israelites named it manna (What is it?). It looked like coriander seed, whitish. And it tasted like a cracker with honey.
Forty-five days into their new freedom, the griping begins. For some, and you know these brothers and sisters, they gripe from day one. Never happy, never content. Always finding fault in something. And the newly freed people of God are wondering aloud, "Why couldn't God let us die in comfort?" Notice how comfort is associated with food. "Lamb stew and all the bread we could eat" is that with which they identified most. Never mind they were no longer working long hours in the hot sun building pyramids and other buildings for their masters as slaves; they were upset because they were now walking away from their captors to their own promised land (and only 45 days into this 40 year journey!) and it is only food they could think about. Sound familiar?
God provides for the journey. In this early part of a very long journey of faith, for God intended for the people of Israel to truly become His people, God promises that He would "rain down bread from heaven," and He does. He provides meat in the form of quail and a "bread" that formed on the ground that the people called manna (Hebrew for "What is it?"). God only asked for their obedience in following His gathering instructions. They had to catch the quail, but they did. They had to stoop over to pick up the manna, and they did. They were just instructed to only take what they needed and not to try to hoard any of it for later. In other words, God said, "I will provide, trust Me every step of the way. Don't get ahead of Me!"
If you've ever moved from one city to another for a better job, you may have identified with all that was involved in uprooting and in making a move meant to better your life. My family as a boy moved from Kingsville, TX to Houston in 1965. We had to. It wasn't necessarily for a better job, it was just to have work. My dad found employment in the big city and lived there for about six months getting established before we could join him in that move. It was not easy leaving behind family and friends or the comfort of the small town that we knew well to a huge city that we knew would be filled with crime and danger all around. Reflecting now, God was with us. One memory from that move was a Friday night when my dad was late coming home and we had run out of food. Dad got paid every Friday and he would get home about five-thirty and we would head to the supermarket to buy groceries and we would enjoy our Friday night supper as a celebration of Dad having a job and having money with which to buy food. But on this particular Friday Dad was late, we had no phone (Kids, cell phones probably weren't even an idea in people's minds back then!) so we had no idea of where he could possibly be. We jsut sat on our sofa and the five of us kids wondered where Dad could be and Mom tried not to act nervous. The youngest of the kids were getting restless and hungry and this started to make Mom a bit more nervous. We lived in a quadplex, actually an old wooden home divided into four apartments. We lived upstairs and only another family lived in the other apartments downstairs. Just two families, the Lopez and the Valverdes. My mom and the lady downstairs were good friends and the woman from downstairs came up to visit and Mom told her our situation. The lady said, "I only have a can of Spaghetti-O's, but you're welcome to have that!" And she ran downstairs and back up with that one can of Spaghetti-O's for the five of us. I don't know how much water Mom added to that small can but I do know we had a satisfying supper and that held us until about nine when Dad came home announcing our introduction to "overtime."
God provides for us every step of the way if we have the faith to trust, to be patient, to do our part, and to walk with Him.
PRAYER: Help us as we walk, dear Father, for we sometimes get ahead of You and that makes us worry. Let us pace ourselves to Your pace. Let us seek to see how you are providing just what we need as we need it. Give us your grace and peace today and each day. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Have a blessed day.
e.v.
