Exodus 16 brings us a story that has taken on new meaning to me as of late. As I have been studying and reading, I have come to see more of God’s heart and more of my own lack of trust in it. Exodus 16 is all about food. I have to admit, I love food. But in Exodus 16 we find our newly freed Israelites complaining over a lack of food. They even go so far as to remark they would rather be back in Egypt! Apparently, lack of food can cloud your senses and cause you to wish for slavery once again. (So many other metaphors in that) But most of you can probably fill in the rest. God comes and brings them manna each morning with strict instructions. Gather only what you need for today. Do not save or store for tomorrow. And the few that do figure out real quick that listening to God is much better than waking up to stinky, worm-infested food. It follows that Christ commanded us in Matthew 6:19, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy.”
God was asking them to trust His faithfulness. To trust that today they would be filled and tomorrow God would again provide for their needs. They didn’t have to stockpile or save..just simply trust in God’s faithfulness.
As I look at my life, I see how insulated it is from trusting in God’s faithfulness. I am not suggesting we all stop saving and live recklessly, but I am suggesting that perhaps our lives are a little too safe. We work so hard to insulate, prepare, and protect ourselves that I think some of us could honestly say we don’t really need God. Ok, we would probably never actually say that, but perhaps our lives appear that way. Perhaps we question God’s faithfulness. We aren’t sure He will really come through. Maybe life experiences have proven that sometimes He hasn’t come through in the way we excepted. Perhaps we are too comfortable and unwilling to stand with Paul when he says, “I know what it is to have plenty and I know what it is to be in want.” Or maybe, we just enjoy the fruits of our labor. And we should..we work hard for them. But we must also remember that those are gifts from God and our not solely for our use. If we use them to insulate our lives to the point of excess and therefore do not really need to rely on God for anything, perhaps we need to step back and question things. Is there someone whom we could bless with our excess? I am convinced that the more we give and rely on God’s faithfulness, the richer our lives will become and the less worried we will be. Our focus will shift from things to people, from temporary to eternal. I know some people that operate as though God is faithful. And I want to be one of those people.
So I ask you and ask myself…
