Then the whole congregation of the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. And the children of Israel said to them, “Oh, that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat and when we ate bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not. And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.” Then Moses and Aaron said to all the children of Israel, “At evening you shall know that the LORD has brought you out of the land of Egypt. And in the morning you shall see the glory of the LORD; for He hears your complaints against the LORD. But what are we, that you complain against us?” Also Moses said, “This shall be seen when the LORD gives you meat to eat in the evening, and in the morning bread to the full; for the LORD hears your complaints which you make against Him. And what are we? Your complaints are not against us but against the LORD.” Exodus 16:2-8
Recently I was reading Ergemier's Bible Story Book to Jonah. We were into the stories where God led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt through a series of miracles, not the least of which were the twelve plagues. These proved even to the Pharoah-worshipping Egyptians that the God of Israel was not Someone with whom to trifle!
After leaving Egypt God led the Israelites by day using a pillar of clouds and a pillar of fire served as the ultimate night light as they slept. And because they needed it for drinking and it would display again His power, God caused water to flow from a rock!
Then, as was inevitable, the supply of food they had carried with them out of Egypt came to an end. There was no source of food naturally and the needs were huge. So the Israelites, while being hydrated by water that had come from a rock, complained to Moses that they were all going to starve to death.
Until I was reading the stories to Jonah it had never occurred to me how utterly ridiculous it was. I wanted to laugh out loud. Or cry. And yet how like them I can be! God has done so much for me, yet sometimes things will happen—things much less dramatic than the specter of starvation—and I will complain. Like the Israelites so long ago, I get my eyes off of the God and on my predicament.
Of course the answer is trust. Not only can I read in the Bible God's promises for today and the future, I can look back and recall the multitude of ways God has already proven to me He is trustworthy.
May I never be silly enough to complain while sipping water from a rock.
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