Key events in today’s reading:

• God provides manna in the wilderness (Exodus 16:1-35)
• God provides water from a rock (Exodus 17:1-7)
• God gives Moses the Ten Commandment (Exodus 18:1-20:21)
• God makes a covenant with Moses (Exodus 24)

Verse that stood out: “Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day” (Exodus 16:4).

Alyson and I were visiting this week about how difficult it is to plan for the future right now. COVID-19 has ruined so many plans already. Who knows what tomorrow holds? The truth, is that is always the case. Whether we realize it or not, we can only live in the present moment. We cannot pause, fast forward, or rewind our lives no matter how hard we try. This is true, even when it comes to receiving God’s provision in our lives. We can only receive in our own hands that for which we have need, today. We must trust that tomorrow resides safely in God’s hands.

Back in Exodus 16, God made this point explicit for the Hebrew people. With the memory of the crossing of the Red Sea beginning to fade with each rumbling of their empty stomachs, God explained how he would provide for his people as they traveled through the desert. “I’ll provide manna, bread from heaven, for you each morning. Gather enough for that day.” At first, a few of the Israelites did not trust God’s plan and attempted to gather more than they needed for that day. What happened? They awoke to stinky, maggot filled manna, unfit for consumption. God was making a point – his people would need to learn to trust God’s provision on a daily basis.

Something amazing begins to happen when we learn to trust God to meet our needs for today, such faithfulness becomes enough for tomorrow. Today’s provision becomes a foretaste of tomorrow’s abundance. Manna, which in itself was nothing special, nevertheless tasted as honey holding forth the promise that one day God would, indeed, bring them into the land of milk and honey. For us, God’s daily provisions of food, of family, of love become in the words of C.S. Lewis, “drippings of grace.” That is, they become present glimpses into the abundance of God’s kingdom come: the great abundance of the Lord’s banqueting table, the sense of belonging that comes from being a part of God’s family, the eternal love we will experience in his presence.

While the manna itself could not be stored up, the memories of God’s provision could be stockpiled, tallied, and reported. Later, as the Israelites prepared to enter the Promise Land, God commanded that a jar of manna be placed in the sanctuary. Why? So that every time the Hebrews went to worship, they would have a visual expression of God’s faithfulness. The Israelites could face uncertain days ahead because they had seen God alive in their lives today, and yesterday, and the day before that. By the time they entered the Promise Land, they’d had forty years of waking up every morning to God’s provision. Now they could enter this new and daunting land trusting that though the manna had ceased God’s provision would not.

Take time today to thank God that he capable and willing to provide all you need for this present moment. Thank him that those provisions give you a glimpse of his coming kingdom. And take time to record those blessing as a testimony to the faithfulness of God, which will continue to be there for all our tomorrows.

For tomorrow, September 5, 2020

Cover to cover: Exodus 28:16-40:21

Key Passage: Exodus 33:12-23

Verse of the day: Exodus 33:19-20

Artwork is “Brot Bread Pain” by Benediktv. CC License. For original click here.