Num
14:1-4 (NIV) That night all the people of the community raised their voices and
wept aloud. 2 All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the
whole assembly said to them, "If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this
desert! 3 Why is the Lord bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the
sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn't it be better
for us to go back to Egypt?" 4 And they said to each other, "We
should choose a leader and go back to Egypt."
NOTE: How is it,
that after seeing God perform mighty miracles in Egypt and split open the Red
Sea and shows a visible presence of smoke and fire, the people are so quick to
turn their backs upon God's plan for their lives? I think fear and focus are
the driving factors. Fear is an emotional response to situations in life that
can cause irrational choices. Focus, the lack of focus on God, and a focus on
circumstances, increases our fear and anxiety. The antidote for both causes is
faith expressed in prayer. Paul writes
"Do not be
anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with
thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which
transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ
Jesus (Phil 4:6-7)." I think one of our problems is that we do not pray
until the crisis is upon us, when the better choice is to seek God in prayer
daily. The Israelites, instead of seeking God, sought each other, "… and they
said to each other …." The solutions to life are not found with a focus on
the seen but with a focus on the unseen.
"For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an
eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is
seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen
is eternal (2 Cor 4:17-18)." We won't find answers talking with people
when we really to be talking to God.
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