Your Best Plan Now

Genesis 22:14: "So Abraham called the name of that place, 'The LORD will provide.'"

I don't like to go at things unprepared.  I take my time.  I do some research.  I get the right equipment, and I learn how to use it.  I read through the instruction manual all the way before I start the project.  I'm that kind of person.  The worst thing you could do to me is say the word "Go" before handing me the map.

That is why passages like Genesis 22 (excerpt above) and Exodus 16 scare me.  They tell how the Lord sent some great people out into the unknown, only promising to provide for them along the way.

In Exodus, the nation of Israel had just figured out that although God brought them out of Egypt, Moses and Aaron didn't have a plan.  They'd been out in the desert for weeks and had nothing left to eat.  If I were there, I have no doubt that I would join in the grumbling against God and Moses.  The parting of the sea was yesterday's news, and they were hungry now.

In the midst of their faithlessness and forgetfulness, the Lord provided.

He made a substance appear out of the heavens to cover the ground each morning.  It was something so unknown (initially) that they simply asked, "What is it?"  Even though they grumbled against him, the Lord gave them food to meet their need and he provided it morning by morning.  Sunday through Thursday the manna appeared, enough for the day (around 2 quarts per person), and if they took too much, anything left spoiled overnight.  On Friday, God provided twice as much and made it last for two days.  Those who presumed that they could gather manna on the Sabbath in spite of what God said woke up to bare ground and an empty stomach.  More than just meeting their daily needs, he mandated times of rest along their journey.

This journey continued for 40 years.  Every single day, God was faithful in doing what he said.  Every single day, the people had to trust him.  At the same time each week, they rested.

I often look at the participants in Biblical history with my "better-than-thou" attitude, but I honestly find myself sympathetic here.  I wonder if they ever reached a point of willingly and joyfully trusting God for his daily provision, or if a small doubt always lingered as to whether or not the bread would appear.  Trusting God daily for a new portion of his grace does not come any more naturally than the manna that appeared.  Personally, I have to fight to give up my assumed control and rely on his sufficiency.  Rest only comes when I recognize that he has given me enough- that he is enough.  I see it over and over again, but I still need reminding.

My best plan is to trust in God's provision as grace for today.

Luke 11:3: "Give us each day our daily bread."