Fireworks and Faithfulness

Happy Canada Day to you all!  I had an enjoyable Canada Day evening, watching fireworks with my friends and sisters.  How did all my fellow Canadians celebrate?

Big news though: just yesterday, I received substantial support for my trip to Benin!

This support was unexpected and I find it amazing to see God's provision, especially so shortly after I decided to solely trust the financials to Him.  That is not to say it has been completely easy to wait on God, without trying to work it out on my own by mentioning my needs.  The easier route by far would be to tell everyone about my trip and the fact that I need money, but that would not be trusting God to act.  Taking matters into my own hands often seems easier at the time, but it is not.  Because I am finite and God is infinite, I cannot know all the details of how something will work out, but I can trust Him to be in control and to have a much better plan than me.

God has been so faithful in the past, and I know He will be in the future.  He has promised to be in His Word!  I can think of many instances where God has proven Himself faithful.  Once such instance took place about three years ago: I was house-sitting for a few months, but knew that I would end up without a place to live.  It was a really stressful time for me because I had no idea where I would end up.  Something I used to joke about was that I would live in a cardboard box...I tried to be lighthearted and wanted to trust in God to provide, but I had many doubts.  God did come through, as I knew He would, but not without some struggles on my end.  Thankfully, God's provision and faithfulness is not based on my own belief in Him.  He watches over His people and will not forsake them (Psalm 37:23-26).

The Israelites

God's chosen people of Israel had to trust Him for their bread each day.  Just like Israel, we learn to trust God when we don't have enough and can't figure out the details on our own.  When the Israelites were wandering in the wilderness, God only gave the people enough food (called manna) to last one day at a time.  If they doubted God's provision for the next day, and saved any of the manna overnight, it became rotten.  Exodus 16 is printed below and is incredibly comforting and uplifting, showing God's daily provision.  He still provides for His children, over and over again!

Exodus 16

1Then they set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the sons of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure from the land of Egypt 2The whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. 3The sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

4Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction. 5“On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” 6So Moses and Aaron said to all the sons of Israel, “At evening you will know that the Lord has brought you out of the land of Egypt; 7and in the morning you will see the glory of the Lord, for He hears your grumblings against the Lord; and what are we, that you grumble against us?” 8Moses said, “This will happen when the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening, and bread to the full in the morning; for the Lord hears your grumblings which you grumble against Him. And what are we? Your grumblings are not against us but against the Lord.”

9Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for He has heard your grumblings.’ ” 10It came about as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. 11And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12“I have heard the grumblings of the sons of Israel; speak to them, saying, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread; and you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’ ”

13So it came about at evening that the quails came up and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. 14When the layer of dew evaporated, behold, on the surface of the wilderness there was a fine flake-like thing, fine as the frost on the ground. 15When the sons of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat. 16“This is what the Lord has commanded, ‘Gather of it every man as much as he should eat; you shall take an omer apiece according to the number of persons each of you has in his tent.’ ” 17The sons of Israel did so, and some gathered much and some little. 18When they measured it with an omer, he who had gathered much had no excess, and he who had gathered little had no lack; every man gathered as much as he should eat. 19Moses said to them, “Let no man leave any of it until morning.” 20But they did not listen to Moses, and some left part of it until morning, and it bred worms and became foul; and Moses was angry with them. 21They gathered it morning by morning, every man as much as he should eat; but when the sun grew hot, it would melt.

22Now on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one. When all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses, 23then he said to them, “This is what the Lord meant: Tomorrow is a sabbath observance, a holy sabbath to the Lord. Bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over put aside to be kept until morning.” 24So they put it aside until morning, as Moses had ordered, and it did not become foul nor was there any worm in it. 25Moses said, “Eat it today, for today is a sabbath to the Lord; today you will not find it in the field. 26“Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, the sabbath, there will be none.

27It came about on the seventh day that some of the people went out to gather, but they found none. 28Then the Lord said to Moses, “How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My instructions? 29“See, the Lord has given you the sabbath; therefore He gives you bread for two days on the sixth day. Remain every man in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.” 30So the people rested on the seventh day.

31The house of Israel named it manna, and it was like coriander seed, white, and its taste was like wafers with honey. 32Then Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded, ‘Let an omerful of it be kept throughout your generations, that they may see the bread that I fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.’ ” 33Moses said to Aaron, “Take a jar and put an omerful of manna in it, and place it before the Lord to be kept throughout your generations.” 34As the Lord commanded Moses, so Aaron placed it before the Testimony, to be kept. 35The sons of Israel ate the manna forty years, until they came to an inhabited land; they ate the manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan. 36(Now an omer is a tenth of an ephah.)