God Provides Manna for the Israelites (Exodus 16)

Bible Summary:

A month and a half after leaving Egypt, the Israelites are just opposite a desert from Mount Sinai when they start complaining to Moses about him starving them to death. God tells Moses He will rain food down from the sky and that the people must collect enough, two quarts each, except on the sixth day when they are to collect four. Moses and Aaron tell the Israelites that God has heard their complaints “against Him”. Once the morning dew evaporates on the next day, thin and flaky white seeds that taste like thin cakes made with honey cover the desert. They eat this manna from heaven for the next forty years until they reach Canaan.

My Thoughts:

Things Become Familiar: In a story like this it is easy to think the Israelites are ungrateful for what God has done for them, but I think it is more the case of things becoming familiar and the miracles being forgotten over time.

I used to travel a bit for work and the first time I saw the Rocky Mountains I was in complete awe. I thought they were so majestic, with the sun peering over the peaks as the day began to end. But after a while, they just became part of the scenery, part of the background. They had lost their newness. It takes effort to remember our everyday miracles.

On the Seventh Day We Rest and Worship: God tells us to take a break once a week. This rarely happens in America. We move at 5,000 miles an hour all the time and do not know how to take a break. Caffeine is the drug of choice to keep us going at this incredible pace.

Try to take a break for one hour, yes, a whole hour once a week. It will be very difficult at first, doing nothing for an hour, but keep at it until you make it the whole hour. You will be surprised how this can change your life.