What is your manna? I woke this morning wondering how the Israelites felt when they were hungry, following a God they barely knew, and learning to trust Him. As Christians, we see the joy and faithfulness of God, but we still have unanswered prayers. We sometimes battle the doubts that arise in the everyday walk. This is what I imagined it was like for a mother who had no food to feed her children.
The woman could not sleep. She left her bed, checking on her children, then stepped outside the tent. The camp was dark; only a few ember fires were scattered around.
She drew her shawl around her in the early morning chill. What would she feed her family today? The figs and meal brought from Egypt were gone. Her children were hungry.
She looked at the stars, now fading in the transparent light of the dawn. She was born in captivity, and amazed as any at the deliverance from slavery, following a man she didn’t know, but trusting in her father and her husband. This God they listened to, who had parted a river while they passed on dry land, what a joyous moment that was, knowing her people were freed from bondage. But now there was the everyday journey, learning to trust a God she was unfamiliar with. And what would God do to feed her children?
She prayed, “God, I do follow you, although I am still learning. Please show me how to trust you and to know your loving kindness and truth. God of Jacob, God of my fathers, please help me feed my children.”
She walked to the back of the tent, still wondering how to learn this everyday walk with a God she was still learning about. As she stood silently, gazing out at the vast expanse of desert, struggling to overcome the fear in her heart, she felt a gentle push on her shoulder. She looked to see where it came from.
Her eyes grew wide, and she quickly went back into the tent to wake her husband. “There is bread on the ground,” she whispered. He rose, still sleepy, “What are you saying?” “Come,” she replied.
The couple stood outside the tent and marveled that the sand was filled with bread. “Get a basket”, her husband said, and hurried off to wake the elders.
As I meditate on this, I see my manna and what I asked of the Lord. I am strengthened, knowing that God can supply all my needs. I can rest, knowing that my manna is coming.