Today’s Devotion
Topic: From Elim to Sin (Part 4)
Text: Exodus 16: 31- 35
31 The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.32 Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Take an omer of manna and keep it for the generations to come, so they can see the bread I gave you to eat in the wilderness when I brought you out of Egypt.’”
33 So Moses said to Aaron, “Take a jar and put an omer of manna in it. Then place it before the Lord to be kept for the generations to come.” 34 As the Lord commanded Moses, Aaron put the manna with the tablets of the covenant law, so that it might be preserved. 35 The Israelites ate manna forty years, until they came to a land that was settled; they ate manna until they reached the border of Canaan. Amen
Israel decided to call the bread from Heaven ‘Manna’. They knew it had been given by God, and they liked the idea of food always being available. But like we discussed yesterday, they didn’t always respect the instructions of God when it came to the food, and God was not too pleased about that.
After Moses had given them the word of God and rebuked their disobedience, he went on to address a human error that was bound to occur soon as they got to the promised land — That is FORGETFULNESS. Israel was bound to forget all these gracious miracles the Lord was doing for them and on their behalf. Even right in this journey, they kept forgetting all God did for them soon as any new challenge came knocking.
So by the instruction of God, they preserved a small portion of the Manna to remind them of God and how He fed them through the wilderness till they reached Canaan.
What about you, Beloved? How easily do you remember the Lord and His merciful deeds in your life? How have you conditioned yourself to consistently remember, even for the years to come? For king David, apart from preserving his Shepherd’s clothes so that he reminded himself of where God brought him from and where he could have been, he also decided to speak to his soul every time not to forget. He said:
“Bless the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, Bless His holy name. Bless the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. He made known His ways to Moses, His deeds to the people of Israel.” (Ps 103: 1-5,7)
Beloved, meditate on this word and begin to appreciate this great God who does not deal with us according to our deeds, but rather according to His own love, mercy and faithfulness. See how Israel was completely unfaithful and ungrateful, yet He never abandoned them. He fed them freely everyday, as He does us, throughout our life journeys.
Begin to pray and bless Him for all His benefits in your life and ask the Holy Spirit to remind you always of where He’s brought you from and how bad things could have been. Also, let us try and walk faithfully with the Lord as He is faithful. He doesn’t change as we do when circumstances change. For the most things we are undeserving of due to our disobedience, He still by mercy helps us through because His steadfast love never ceases and His faithfulness never comes to an end. They are new every morning!
If we claim to be on a journey through this barren land with this faithful God, then what manner of persons ought we be?
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