July 16, 2024

Numbers 14:11-16 (HCSB)
God’s Judgment of Israel’s Rebellion
11 The Lord said to Moses, “How long will these people despise Me? How long will they not trust in Me despite all the signs I have performed among them? 12 I will strike them with a plague and destroy them. Then I will make you into a greater and mightier nation than they are.” 13 But Moses replied to the Lord, “The Egyptians will hear about it, for by Your strength You brought up this people from them. 14 They will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that You, Lord, are among these people, how You, Lord, are seen face to face, how Your cloud stands over them, and how You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. 15 If You kill this people with a single blow, the nations that have heard of Your fame will declare, 16 ‘Since the Lord wasn’t able to bring this people into the land He swore to give them, He has slaughtered them in the wilderness.’

Jenny Morton
The people of Israel allowed fear to blind their knowledge of God's trustworthiness. So, the Lord basically told Moses He was done with them. He'd get rid of them and build His great nation through Moses. But Moses pled the case of how that would look to other nations. Do you ever worry about how your bad actions or lack of action reflect on God? It's true that His light shines through us. But it's also true that to the world, our darkness reflects back on Him. When my kids were growing up they went to "big" church with us. Looking back it was probably more than they understood, but I would tell them to not let the Devil use them to be a distraction for someone who needs the message. We never know when God is working in someone's life and I would never want to be what turned someone away from God. We need to trust God and let His light show through us because He is faithful. God sees the big picture and He (and therefore us, as followers) win in the end! Strive to trust God by faith so that He can do the impossible through us.