This past Sunday was the first week of our stewardship emphasis for the month of October. Dwelling in Exodus 17, we heard the story of the Israelites struggling with the reality of scarcity in the middle of the desert. Not seeing any water, they begin to panic, leading to fear. But this fear only leads to their mistrust in Moses as their leader and their mistrust in God’s promise to provide for them.
Though we might not be Israelites wandering in the middle of a literal desert, there are times in our lives in which we find ourselves in wilderness places. Perhaps we have felt the tinge of scarcity, or perhaps we know others who have. Either way, each and every one of us has felt the power of fear and how easy it is to hold onto fear, limiting our ability to trust ourselves, to trust others, and most importantly to trust God.
Fear is powerful and has the ability to lead us to mistrust. And, when we are held tightly in the grip of fear, it may be challenging to receive the provision God has for us. But here’s the good news: even when we are bound by fear, and even rescind our trust in God, God promises – always – to be faithful to us, no matter what.
So, as you go into the coming week, if you’re looking to ponder these ideas and our Scripture lesson a bit further, I invite you to consider these questions:
- In the midst of scarcity, what is your knee-jerk response?
- What fears are you holding? What fears have you held onto and how did it impact you?
- What makes trusting God’s provision so gosh darn hard?
- You’ve heard it said that God helps those who help themselves. Why might that not be true? How does the Exodus story help reshape this phrase we’ve heard before?
In faith, we trust that God promises to provide enough for us, and enough for all people. And thanks be to God, it’s not up to what we “do” to receive God’s provision. But now, as people who trust in God’s faithfulness, it’s our responsibility as stewards of God’s provision to share what we have received with all the world.