“If it’s not one thing, then it’s another”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Wednesday, April 27, 2022
Exodus 15:22-16:10 (Forward, p. 88) CEV p. 70
Complaints: it really does seem that if it’s not one thing, then it’s another. Out here only prairies, it is an ingrained, generations long part of our way of thinking, part of our very existence. We complain about insects and plights, growing conditions for crops, rail companies, the federal government, and of course, failing all else, the weather. And during covid, we have received plentiful other reasons to complain and things to complain about. We have settled into an almost endless litany of complaints about other things as well, the latest medical advice and government regulations, the data or lack thereof, the enforced isolation, quarantining and distancing, the masks, the vaccinations, government action or inaction, and then, the real chestnut, the lack of freedom. Complaining has become our way of life.
Here we find ourselves in good company with the ancient Israelites. There in the desert complaining was their way of life as well. They complained about water (it was too bitter), and they complained about their food, bread and meat in particular, actually accusing Moses and Aaron of bringing them out into the desert in order to starve them to death. And, on the subject of food, they have rather warped and faulty memories. They seem to recall that in Egypt they were able to sit around and eat all the bread and meat they wanted, which was highly unlikely given that they were slaves then and had a daily quota of work to accomplish. But then, when it comes to complaining, people often have a warped and rosy picture of what they remember, remember falsely, as ‘the good old days!’ (This certainly is the case in terms of many people’s memories of past days in the church, and of many of our memories of society as well.)
It is interesting, and quite informative, to see how God responded to the complaints of the ancient Israelites:
a) Firstly, we notice that He did indeed hear their complaints, take them seriously, and answer them either through Moses or through direct action. The bitter water at Marah was sweetened through Moses throwing a particular kind of wood into the water, and the dearth of bread and meat were solved by His sending of manna and quails.
b) Secondly, we see that God considered all this complaining, not to be accusations or fault-finding against their two human leaders, Moses and Aaron, but against Himself.
c) And finally, we realize that God’s answers, God’s provision, were also means to testing Israel, testing them in two ways. Firstly, to see whether they would trust Him and keep faith with Him, and secondly, as an expression of this, whether they would obey Him.
So, for me, this raises some questions. Can it be said that our complaining, or at very least, some of it, is really against God, yes, even when it is against our leadership? Should we not rejoice that we have people in leadership who are working, often against the clock and under great pressure, to try to come up with solutions to our pressing issues? Yes, their efforts may seem insufficient or flawed or tardy at times, but then, they are, to quote the advertising jingle, they are ‘only human after all.’ Maybe we should quit complaining a bit. Often if it’s not one thing, it’s another.
Maybe our present uncertainties should provide us with a cattle prod into spending more time in intercessory prayer and more time in thanksgiving for what God has done, and is doing, even through us fallible human beings. Amen.
Forward notes: “Then Moses said to Aaron, ‘Say to the whole congregation of the Israelites, ‘Draw near to the LORD, for he has heard your complaining.’’ And as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the Israelites, they looked toward the wilderness, and the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud” (verses 9-10).
“I took a group of sixth and seventh graders to the nearby big city. It was blistering hot, and the sun beat down on us, unrelenting. Several young people complained. The complaints were less desperation and more of a verbalized momentary displeasure—the kind of complaints youth ministers and parents and guardians hear frequently and encourage young people to work through when possible.
“The next day, we heard this portion of Exodus. A young woman said, ‘This was like yesterday when we were walking around in the heat.’ She got it—she made a personal connection between an old Bible story and her modern-day life. Her comment sparked others to find some common ground and better understand the words of the Israelites.
“For both groups, after the heat and the complaining, God showed up, and it was glorious.”
MOVING FORWARD: “Need to complain today? Go ahead. And then remember to look for the glory of the Lord.”