WATER FROM THE ROCK
by Kathy Pegram

 

After crossing the Red Sea, as the Israelites went further and further into the desert, they were faced once again with another survival crisis – no water! They started complaining to Moses, their leader. Even though God had kept them safe from the Egyptian army, even though He had guided them safely through the desert, and provided food in the form of manna, they grumbled because they had no water. Due to this, once again God performed another miracle through Moses that teaches us the importance of trusting God with everyday problems.

The Israelites viewed the lack of water at Rephidim as a disaster! They thought God had abandoned them to die in the desert. They began to question whether God was even with them. God was with them in a way that was beyond their comprehension. What first appeared to be an indication of God's absence proved to be one of the most dramatic illustrations of God's presence, provision, and protection.

Israel's response to the lack of water was exactly what they had done previously. Only this time their transgression was greater than the one before. You would think that by now the Israelites would have learned to trust God – to know without a doubt He would supply their needs. After all, they should have been able to look upon His previous provision of water at Marah. Then of course there was the quail and manna in the wilderness. Only this time they are doing more than just grumbling. Previously the Israelites had grumbled against Moses and Aaron but now they are arguing with Moses. They are planning to stone him. Earlier they were asking Moses what they were going to drink. Now they are demanding that Moses give them water to drink. It appears the people are almost demanding that Moses perform another miracle for them. It is like they are trying to make him prove he has God's authority to lead them by producing water miraculously.

Moses tells the people they are putting God to the test. God had placed Moses over them and to argue with Moses was the same as to argue with God. Can you image this? The Israelites are asking, "Is the Lord among us or not?" Here they have a pillar of cloud by day, a pillar of fire by night, and God revealing His glory to Moses while He hovered over them. He gave them quail and manna to eat. And let's not forget the Red Sea miracle. And then they want to know if God is there. On top of this they began to whine about following Moses and begin to wish they were back in Egypt in captivity!

I image around this time Moses wished he had never got mixed up with this group of people. But Moses does the only thing he can, he cries out to the Lord for help. And you know the rest of the story. God sends Moses on ahead of the people. Why? Because God wants the people to realize that Moses is the leader. Then God sent some of the elders with Moses to see the miracle that was about to happen. The Lord promised Moses that He would be standing before Him at the rock at Horeb. Moses was to strike the rock, causing water to flow from it. When Moses did this, water came forth from the rock, providing for the needs of the Israelites.

I wonder how many times God must provide water from the rock, manna from heaven, pillars of clouds by day and a fire by night? How many Red Seas must He part, and how many rocks must He smote before we learn to fully trust in Him? At times I have to remind myself that I'm behaving just like the Israelites did. I will begin to complain and grumble asking God where are you? And then He has to remind me that He is right there and that He has never gone anywhere. He teaches me that I'm the one holding on to the past. The past disappointments, the past failures, the past hurts. God wants to move me out of the wilderness. He wants to move me into His nowness. And then I realize if I could just let go Egypt and move forward out of the wilderness that I could finally reach the Promised Land. The place God has for me.

God has never failed His people. No, He hasn't made the journey easy. But, He hasn't left us to travel it alone either. It doesn't matter what is in our past, what others say about us, or how they treat us. It is just about Him! His glory, His righteousness, His love! Let the water from the rock wash over you today. Let it wash away your tears and disappointments. Then, look ahead to where God is leading you. It's a brand new day. He will never leave you or forsake you.

Love & Prayers,
Kathy