Rumbling and Grumbling

“You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord.” Exodus 16:8

 

In just a few weeks time, the plagues had fallen, the sea parted, Pharaoh’s army been defeated, and sour water turned sweet, yet as soon as tummies started to rumble, God’s people started to grumble.  “We were better off as slaves!  At least in Egypt we had supper—and plenty of it!  Now we’re going to die in the desert!”(Ex 16:2-3).  

Really?  Did they really think God had split the sea just to see them starve?  Did they truly believe the Power who pounded Pharaoh couldn’t provide lunch?  Did God’s miracles of yesterday count for nothing today?  Did His faithfulness in the past not give promise for the future?

Obviously not, but we shouldn’t seem so surprised, for if we listened to ourselves, we often sound the same.  During the days of our lives, even through hardship, heartache, or horror, God has been present and purposeful.  He has given us strength for the moment and hope for tomorrow.  He has clothed us, fed us, called us, kept us, surrounded us, supported us, blessed us, and befriended us.  And still, as soon as an account gets empty, an expectation turns to disappointment, or a circumstance becomes uncomfortable, the complaining commences.  

We moan. We groan.  We mutter and murmur.  “What?  Why?  This makes no sense, and I’m not going to make it!”  We wouldn’t call it griping against God, but we should because that’s what it is.  We want someone to blame when we’re sad or life goes bad, and since God’s in charge, we hold Him accountable.  But this only shows us up and not God because our grumbling grows out of a lack of focus or lack of trust.  When we stop seeing and seeking God’s glory in all situations or we stop believing that He will protect and provide according to His perfect will, we tend to be discontent.

We need to remember that we are never promised health and wealth on earth, and it often seems that God works through money and medical issues to test us and teach us.  So the next time you are stressed or distressed in those areas and others, don’t start to grumble; begin to pray.  

God knows what we want.  He will give us what you need.  He can be trusted today; He can be trusted tomorrow.  We might not understand all that comes or doesn’t come our way, but we can be certain that God is working for His purpose and He will keep His promise of provision.  

Grumbling does no good and only obscures our view of God, so when times get tough, shut your mouth, open your eyes, and trust with all your heart.

The Astounding Impossible

“The Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.”  Exodus 14:22

The Israelites stood at the sea and stared.  Ahead they saw an overwhelming deep.  Behind—fast approaching doom.  The promise of deliverance was about to end in either drowning or defeat, and neither would be nice.  

Why?  Why had God gotten their hopes up to simply to dash them to death in such a tragic and terrible way?  They would have been better left alone in slavery than sent to doom at the water’s edge.  With the sound of waves on one side and the whir of chariot wheels on the other, the people were angry and afraid.  

But then God did something so amazingly, incredibly, stunningly astounding that their history and world history were changed forever—He made a way through the water.  The thing they didn’t dare dream became reality, and from that day forward, God’s people never lived in fear of the enemy again.

We know something ‘bout that!  Sunday was Easter—a day of deep and delightful celebration.  A time to remember that at the very hour when all hope was lost and lying in a borrowed tomb, when waves of grief were crashing on one side and terror of the future filled the other, God did something so amazingly, incredibly, stunningly astounding that our history and world history were changed forever.  He got up and walked out!  

Tuesday would be terrible without this reality.  Life would have no purpose, no pleasure, no prospect of anything good. Each day would be dreadful and dreaded—a mere, meaningless existence sure to end in permanent death—physically and spiritually. 

But such is not so and will never be, for since the tomb is empty, we need not fear the enemy!  Sin, death, and the devil will not be triumphant and have been trounced, and though for our few years on earth, we deal with their presence, their fate was sealed when Jesus broke the seal and one day they will be destroyed.

Never forget it!  Always remember it!  The good news that our Savior is risen should have us shouting and singing through all the moments of every day—not just during the Easter service!  No circumstances can change this truth.  No tragedy can alter it.  No doubt can splinter it.  No disbelief can collapse it. The powers on earth may ignore it and the powers of hell may attack it, but the reality of the resurrection is fixed, final, and forever.  

God has done what we could not do and dared not dream.  He has made a way for us to be with Him in life, in death, in all eternity. So don’t stare at the sea and be scared.  Live like the astounding impossible will happen—because it has!

Torn Apart

These days, a signature seals the deal on a contract.  Back in the day, a handshake signified the same.  But there was a time when a covenant was made certain by walking between a divided carcass.  Even God did it.

One day when Abraham was bummed because he had no babies, a word from the Lord promised lots of offspring and a land to live in.  “How can I be sure?” Abraham asked, and God answered, “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, and I’ll show you”(Gen 15:9).

“Abraham brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other.  When darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces.  On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abraham”(Gen 15:10, 17-18).

It all sounds bizarre and bloody, but the gory ceremony was a strong way of saying, “May I be torn apart if I don’t do as I say.”  But what only God knew as He passed between the pieces was that one day He would have to do just that—not because He hadn’t kept His word but so that He could keep it.  

Soon after the start, He had said it to a disobedient Adam and Eve and a deceptive serpent, and through the years that followed, God repeated the promise to redeem His people, save His own, forgive their sins, and restore their souls.  For this very reason, one bizarre and bloody Friday, a beaten and battered Jesus hung between heaven and earth groaning, gasping, and giving His all so we could be His.

Much has been made of the pain and suffering His body experienced on the cross, but the worst agony happened in the dark.  It was then that the Father tore the eternal Trinity apart and turned away.  We cannot fathom the horror, hell, and hopelessness Jesus endured during those three hours of forever, and because of His sacrifice, by His grace and to His praise, we never will. 

God knew if He stayed intact we would stay away, so He tore Himself apart to bring us back together.

May we be overwhelmed and overcome by the depth of this great love. 

What a wonderful Savior.