April 23, 2024

Exodus 16:1-5 (HCSB)
Manna and Quail Provided
16 The entire Israelite community departed from Elim and came to the Wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had left the land of Egypt. 2 The entire Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. 3 The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by pots of meat and ate all the bread we wanted. Instead, you brought us into this wilderness to make this whole assembly die of hunger!” 4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. This way I will test them to see whether or not they will follow My instructions. 5 On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather on other days.”

Nathan Putty
Freedom will always cost you something. Even though they were slaves, in Egypt the Israelites enjoyed plentiful food and water. When they chose freedom over bondage, they gave up those creature comforts. How quickly they started longing for the “good ole days.” Sound familiar? For you it might be giving up a certain lifestyle, distancing yourself from people in your life. Not going to see that movie, or buy that album by an artist you used to listen to. Maybe it meant a change of profession. Have you ever longed for the “good ole days?” The Christian walk can be difficult and like the perpetually grumbling Israelites, we can be tempted to return to bad habits, to wish for bondage –a time when things were “easier.” Deep down, just like the Israelites of old, we know we will be free if we make the right choice and follow God. The gift we receive as Christians is given freely, but if we are truly living as God’s Word tells us to, then that glorious, life-changing decision will inevitably cost us something. God never leaves us hanging, though, and He has laid out instructions for us just as He provided guidance to the Israelites about how they should behave in the face of the miracle to come.