No More Grumbling

"The whole Israelite community set out from the Desert of Sin, traveling from place to place as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. 2 So they quarreled with Moses and said, "Give us water to drink."
Moses replied, "Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the LORD to the test?"

3 But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses. They said, "Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?"

4 Then Moses cried out to the LORD, "What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me." Exodus 17:1-4

I was reading in Exodus, about the whole trials of the Israelites- the troubles with Pharaoh, leaving Egypt, crossing the Red Sea, and all the rest. There is one constant with these Israelite people, and that is that they were a bunch of whiners. In these verses today, this is after the people have been whining several times about this and that, yet they always take up with the whining right after God did something awesome for them. Almost as soon as they crossed the sea, and Pharaoh and his army were destroyed, they were whining about being thirsty. Then after God provided water, they began whining about being hungry. So God provided food in the form of manna and quail, and then they thought they needed something to whine about, so they whined about being thirsty again. If I was Moses, I would have wanted to beat them all with a stick! No wonder his conversation here with God- the people were driving him batty with their incessant whining.

As I was dwelling on the chapters I read, the instances of whining and grumbling really were many, and my first thoughts were of wonderment. Here was a people, personally assisted by God to escape slavery. They followed a pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day to help them find their way... yet they still found opportunity to complain. How could they do that? How could they personally witness the glory of God and then a short while later act as if it never happened? Then I began to wonder about how much of a reflection the Israelites are on us as Christians. How often do we complain? How often do we grumble about this or that? How often do we see God working in our lives, and then we complain that it isn't enough, or that we'd like a little bit more? We can go to church even, receive a wonderful sermon that was delivered as if it was meant for us personally, and then a few minutes later on the ride home we're complaining about something instead of simply thanking God for the words he gave us, and dwelling on them and what they might mean for us.

The last few weeks here have been pretty tight for us money wise. We knew it would be okay, but we had a hang-up with Andy's unemployment compensation, and it's been several weeks since there was any income at all. I was getting a bit nervous about our situation, but I knew in my heart that God would take care of it in His time. So I did the only thing I could do, and I spent time praying for our situation. And then God came through- several weeks of unemployment was deposited, and things aren't so dire. And while I did smile about that for a while, and I really, really thanked God for his blessing, it wasn't that long before I was looking at the calendar, wondering where that next infusion of money was going to come from.

And I recognized what I was doing almost right away.

Because I'd just spent some time in God's Word, reading about the Exodus, I saw myself in those Israelites, and I kind of got mad with myself. Here I was, just a few hours earlier, reading about these people, praying that I wouldn't be like them, and then just like that I have the opportunity to do better, and I blow it.

But I'll tell you what. Reading through Exodus, God still continued to bless His people, and he still provided for them. And once I recognized what I was doing, I apologized to God and thanked him again for his blessings and asked for his continued provision. And I know He will do just that. I can keep the Israelites in my mind though, and remember how they grumbled at every step of the journey, and pray earnestly that I would not be so jaded. That I would keep my mind on God and what He has for us, and not what we don't have or what we want. God does provide, and he does love His children very much. And just as my children whine from time to time and complain, I still love them with all my heart, even though I may find them a nuisance every once in a while. How much more does God love us? That is something worth remembering.