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Remember “Manna” comes from the Father
I had to repent today, I had to get before God and ask him for forgiveness. How quickly we forget, how quickly I forgot. God is sovereign and all that he does is good, perfect, just, holy and right. Yet, in my situation, I was demanding something different. Here is what I mean, I believe that God is completely sovereign, he is in complete control. What that also means is that man doesn’t control anything over me, my trust is in God, right? So, all I need to do is be faithful, pray, trust him and wait for him to make a way where there is no way. What’s silly of me, foolish rather is God has come through for me so many times before, time and time again he has come through, yet, here I was again, forgetting his goodness and doubting his care.
Asaph nails this point in Psalm 78:25 ” For they did not believe or trust God to care for them.” This is me in the passage too. A little after Asaph says “They(Israel) ate the food of angels“(V.25), yet it wasn’t a enough. That’s exactly what has happened to me and was happening to me all over again. You see Manna, was a type of grain or seed that could make bread, pancakes or rice cakes, God would send this down directly from heaven, this is how God chose to feed his children. Yet, they didn’t appreciate it, they didn’t like it, in fact they preferred to go back to Egypt as slaves and eat the food they had there instead of what God was providing for them. Did you catch that? They didn’t want what God was offering, it wasn’t good enough. Manna was from God, the father, it was good enough for him (if it came from heaven it must have been good enough), he desired to share this with his children but what God was giving “wasn’t good enough.” Listen, if it comes from God, its ALL good. Everything he creates and gives is good, we just have a really hard time trusting his motives don’t we? I’m included myself here. We may not have control over our current situation but our hearts, our attitude determine how we come out of it. It’s never what get’s done but how we respond and hey, this was same way with Israel in the Old Testament, they were blessed, they rebelled, God tested them, they repented, they were blessed, repeat, repeat, repeat.
So, here is the thing, if you are somewhere today where things are tough, if you are facing struggles, if your boss is driving you crazy, if your finances are falling apart….what ever your desert is, when God gives you “Manna“…ask first, who is in complete control? If you agree with me that God is, then ask this, Can I trust him to care for me? What ever God has in store for your life, is perfect, good and Holy, like Manna, say thank you, worship God for it, ask him for more, ask him to continue providing what he has in store. God is eternal, he is preparing us for eternity, so keep your focus on Him and the response of your heart for eternity, at least that’s what keeps helping me. (Smily face)
What is your “Manna”? Are you thankful for it?
Walk in the counsel of others
The great king Solomon, the wisest man to ever live, behind Jesus shares some great thoughts on what he values in leadership.
In Proverbs 6:22 we read “When you walk, their counsel will lead you. When you sleep, they will protect you. When you wake up, they will advise you.”
Proverbs 11:14 “Without wise leadership, a nation falls; there is safety in having many advisers.” Proverbs 12:15 “Fools think their own way is right, but the wise listen to others.”
Proverbs 15:22 “Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many advisers bring success.”
Proverbs 19:20 “Get all the advice and instruction you can, so you will be wise the rest of your life.”
Proverbs 20:18 ”Plans succeed through good counsel; don’t go to war without wise advice.”
So, I think you get the idea, the advise of others is an important part of leadership according to Solomon. This is likely the most important element of leadership and I will explain why, it actually helps us address a few things in our lives. To start, by seeking the counsel of others we place ourselves in accountability, we actually are admitting that we need help and are seeking to find the truth through consistent advise. It also keeps us humble, trust me, a prideful person isn’t that interested in hearing your opinion but a humble person will, so it’s good for us to evaluate where we are in this process of counsel.
Who fully understands the heart? Hoe can we make decisions based on what we think our heart reveals? Only God understands all the secrets of the heart, what ever I am feeling, thinking, what I believe, I choose to place that process through the filter of others that are also walking with God and through that, God will confirm what is good and right and what I might be missing wrong. That is why it’s so important to seek the counsel and advise from others.
Let’s stay in community with others, allowing others to sharpen us and grow together in humility and maturity.
