Don't forget the Past

Deuteronomy 8:11-19 - Beware that you do not forget the LORD your God by not keeping His commandments and His ordinances and His statutes which I am commanding you today; otherwise, when you have eaten and are satisfied, and have built good houses and lived in them, and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold multiply, and all that you have multiplies, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. He led you through the great and terrible wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water; He brought water for you out of the rock of flint. In the wilderness He fed you manna which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might test you, to do good for you in the end. Otherwise, you may say in your heart, 'My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth. But you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. It shall come about if you ever forget the LORD your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I testify against you today that you will surely perish.

There's a warning to Israel in this passage. Here it is... don't forget the wilderness! When there was no water, God provided. When they lacked in food, God provided. He fed them with manna "that He might humble [them] and that He might test [them], to do good for [them] in the end." What a benevolent God and what a forgetful people. Once in the land of plenty, they seemed to think that they had made it on their own power.

Sounds like our story doesn't it? We trust and depend on God when times are rough as we realize our insufficiency... and then when situations turn around, we pat ourselves on the back. Beware, don't forget the past. Don't forget that we were dead in our trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1) and if it was not for the grace of God through Christ Jesus our Lord, we'd still be on that one-way road to eternal separation from God. Watch out for pride and don't forget the Lord's providence in your life. You'd be nowhere without it.

All We Have is Manna Again...

Numbers 11:4-6 - The rabble who were among them had greedy desires; and also the sons of Israel wept again and said, "Who will give us meat to eat? "We remember the fish which we used to eat free in Egypt, the cucumbers and the melons and the leeks and the onions and the garlic, but now our appetite is gone. There is nothing at all to look at except this manna."

That's you and me right there! Just like the people of Israel who were grumbling, we too are ungrateful people who daily focus on our own needs and forget to trust in God's provision. And God is not pleased with our selfish hearts. We are to "in everything give thanks" (1 Thessalonians 5:18) because God is always faithful to provide in His time. Sadly, we too often look at what we don't have and forget what we have already been given.

"There is nothing at all to look at except this manna." Without that manna, you'd perish! I don't like my boss and am bored at work... without that job, you'd have no money! I wish I could eat nicer food... some people haven't eaten in weeks! And ungratefulness always reveals itself in our thoughts, speech, and actions. We fail to trust in God, instead take matters into our own hands, and begin to do things out of selfish motives. We cease to be vehicles of encouragement and service to others when we are ungrateful. If that becomes a common occurrence in our lives, that means we're deceived, blind, and have much to learn about the goodness of our faithful, providing God.

Jesus was tempted by Satan in a similar way (Matthew 4). Jesus had fasted for 40 days and nights, and then Satan told Jesus to turn stones into bread. Jesus must have been hungry and Jesus definitely had the power to make Himself food. However He didn't. Why? Jesus knew that God had brought Him to that place without food, and He knows that God does not make mistakes. There was no need for Him to try to fight God's will, just opportunity to trust.

Who's your priority? Is it God? Or is it yourself? How thankful you are is a measure of how much you prioritize God's will. If your focus is on God's will, you will be thankful for where you're at today because you know you're far better off than you deserve. We deserve eternal condemnation and separation, but instead we inherit every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places (Ephesians 1:3) as adopted children. What more could we ever want or need? If your focus is on yourself instead, you will grumble. Put God first, your needs second, and rejoice always in any circumstance!