Dear Church-
The Old Testament
lesson that we didn’t get to hear on Sunday was from Exodus 17 which starts
like this >>
The Israelites left
the desert and moved from one place to another each time the Lord ordered
them to. Once they camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for them to
drink.
The people started complaining to Moses,
“Give us some water!” Moses replied, “Why are you complaining to me and trying
to put the Lord to the test?” But the people were thirsty and kept on
complaining, “Moses, did you bring us out of Egypt just to let us and our
families and our animals die of thirst?”
Then Moses prayed to the Lord,
“What am I going to do with these people? They are about to stone me to death!”
<< Today was the first time I sided
with the Israelites. In the past I have tended to see things through Moses’
eyes. He was so irked with the people when they complained that he named the
place where they were, Massah which means “testing” and Meribah, which means
“complaining.”
Well, what did Moses expect? It was great
that they were free from Egypt, but they were also frightened. Sure, they were
thirsty, but their cry against Moses and against God came as much out of fear
as anything else. And I can’t say that I blame them. This was early on in their
journey. It was less than two months since they’d escaped the Pharoah and they
didn’t know what to expect. That’s scary.
Sometimes we face the unknown and our
fear gets the best of us. And we wonder what God’s been up to. It’s human,
really human. But here’s something the Israelites learned on their journey- God
wasn’t ever going to abandon them. He gave them food and water. He was on their
side and he was with them every step of the way- in a pillar of cloud by day
and a pillar of fire by night.
Right now we are facing our own
uncertainties and it’s only human to be frightened on some level or another.
There is so much at stake for individuals and communities around the world. We
are in need of good news and so I found it providential that this story showed
up.
When Moses complained to God, God didn’t
get angry. God listened and then God told Moses how and where to get water,
before promising, “I will be with you.”
God can handle our fears, our anger and our complaints. God can forgive
our doubts and our uncertainties. And best news of all- God will be with us,
every step of the way.
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