Grumbling And Grace

The LORD said to Moses, “I have heard the Israelites’ complaints. Now tell them, ‘In the evening you will have meat to eat, and in the morning you will have all the bread you want. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.’” Exodus 16:11-12

GOD HAD HEARD the cries of his people and sent a deliverer to bring them out of slavery in Egypt. He had held back a wall of water so they could cross through the Red Sea on dry ground and then released it to drown their enemies. Most recently he had brought them to an Eden-like oasis and sweetened the bitter water there to slake their thirst. They should have been overflowing with gratitude. But instead, God’s people grumbled, accusing him of bringing them out into the wilderness to die of hunger.

God would have been just to let them starve right there in the desert. But God’s grace is greater than his people’s grumbling. His gracious response to their grumbling was to supernaturally provide for them. Every day as they gathered just enough manna to meet the day’s needs and went to bed expecting it to rain down again the next morning, they were learning what it meant to live by faith in God’s promised provision.

We long for our children to learn what it means to live by faith. We sometimes think it is all about knowing the right things and acting the right way. But isn’t it really more about sensing a great need for what only God can provide and waking up each day to that provision? Though we are quick to notice when our kids gripe and grumble, how often do they hear us complain —about their messy room, an annoying neighbor, or about our own parents? What we all need is for gratitude to crowd out our impulse to complain.

Lord, forgive us for our grumbling against you when you are providing everything we need, including what we need most —the Living Bread that came down from heaven, Jesus himself. Lord, give ________ a desperate hunger for you. Help ________ to see that only your provision nourishes and satisfies the human soul. As he takes and eats your provision, the body and blood of Christ, make him truly know that you are the Lord his God.