There was one short period of time when Yahweh short-circuited the whole process of planting, growth, and harvesting, and went directly from need to provision. I’m speaking, of course, of the manna the Israelites lived on in the wilderness. Here’s what happened: “And the people of Israel said to [Moses and Aaron], ‘Would that we had died by the hand of Yahweh in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.’ Then Yahweh said to Moses, ‘Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you….” I realize that they were kind of new at this whole “trust Yahweh” thing. But had they forgotten how God had taken them out of Egypt? It hadn’t exactly been subtle. Only one month had passed since they left their lives of bondage, and already they were assuming that the God who had turned off the sun and killed the Egyptian firstborn (not to mention Pharaoh’s armies) had run out of ammo, so to speak. Okay, so feeding a couple of million people was “impossible.” But sending frogs, hail and locusts on schedule—and then removing them—wasn’t exactly easy, either. At some point, we all need to cross this same bridge: deciding in our own hearts whether Yahweh is actually God—thus capable of keeping His promises, however outlandish they might seem—or He’s not, in which case slavery or rebellion are our only options. So God now promised to “rain bread from heaven.” I can imagine a wry smile creeping across Moses’ face. Oh, sure, why didn’t I think of that? And next week we’ll get water out of a rock, right? You’re enjoying this, aren’t You? After a lifetime of watching Yahweh provide for me in similarly unexpected ways, I’m finally starting to get the picture: adversity is merely a quiz in the schoolroom of life. Trust Yahweh and we pass; panic and we fail. I’m not saying these pop-quizzes are pleasant or fun, but they do help us gauge our progress. We haven’t really mastered the subject, however, until we can stand with Job and say, “Though He slay me, I will hope in Him.”
Posted on: Sat, 21 Sep 2013 01:50:02 +0000
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