And there went forth a wind from the Lord, and brought quails from the sea, and let them fall by the camp, as if it were a day's journey on this side, and as if it were a day's journey on the other side, round about the camp, and as it were two cubits high upon the face of the earth. Numbers 1131. Lord, as I continue my journey to the promised future, strengthen my mind, body, and soul, so that I do not get weary leading myself and those called to be with me to our promised land. I thank you for assembling the right team that will help me execute with excellence the task set before me. As I look at the book of Numbers 11.4-11.35, when times get hard on my journey to my destiny, I will be careful not to look into my past and long for the things that brought me comfort. Instead, I will look forward with my eyes towards the prize and promise that awaits me in my upcoming season. I declare that I will not sacrifice my legacy for temporary luxury, because I know that doing so will only leave me with the pain of regret. So, I speak to my mind and declare peace over it. I will speak to my heart and command it to remember all of God's provision and deep love for me. I confess that I only want what you want for me, Lord, and thank you that you never disappoint. in Jesus' name. Amen. This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human. God provides quail. In our last story, we learned about Israel begging God to stay in their presence and not to leave because of their stubbornness. God reestablished His covenant with Israel, and they built Him a tabernacle. In this story, we pick back up with the Israelites wandering the desert and their continued distrust in God's provision As inspired by the book of numbers Hello, i'm jack graham with today's episode of the bible in a year podcast But before we begin I want to let you know about a unique ebook That yours to download absolutely free today It called Breaking Free from Stress and my prayer is that it will help you conquer the daily tasks and pressures and burdens that bring stress in your life. Download your free copy of Breaking Free from Stress today by visiting jackgraham.org slash stress. That's jackgraham.org slash stress. In yesterday's reading, we learned that God led the Israelites into the desert again, headed towards the promised land. God instructed the Israelites in the building and setting up of the tabernacle, the place where His presence would dwell with them on the earth. And as we closed out the book of Exodus, God was leading the Israelites through the deserts, His presence once again appearing as cloud and fire to guide them and to tell them when to stop and when to go. Today we'll enter the book of Numbers, and once again we'll hear how the people continue to complain and express their lack of faith in God. Their impatience and distrust will wear on Moses, and God will see that he needs help. Leading these people is no small task. It is a great task. So, let's listen to today's reading. Moses continued to lead the thousands of people through the wilderness towards the promised land, and God continued to provide for his people. Moses and the Lord were close and spoke daily. However, the mantle of leadership began to wear on Moses. His eyes looked weary, and his body was tired from tending to all the needs of Israel alone. The people of Israel began to moan in hunger. Like children needing food, they groaned and held their stomachs. Moses could hear their childish sounds from inside his tent. He got up from his tent and went out to find people grabbing him and complaining. When we were in Egypt, we had fish, cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic. Oh, that we would be able to eat meat again. For weeks we have had nothing but manna. They wailed an anxious complaint. Their childish weeping angered God and irked Moses as Well, annoyed, tired, and feeling overwhelmed, Moses snapped at God, shouting, Have I done something wrong that you would lay the burden of all these people on me? Am I their mother? Did I carry them in my womb? No. Yet you would have me breastfeed them all the way to the promised land. I cannot carry all these people on my own. It's too much. You should kill me now so I don't do something I am going to regret. God took Moses seriously, for his burden was great. Over 600,000 people were in his care. Issues of family strife, sexual abuse, fights and arguments over property plagued Moses daily. It was truly a burden too great for him to bear alone. So the Lord had Moses appoint 70 men out of the elders of Israel to be his officers to relieve his burden. All but two came to Moses' side. Moses gathered them all in his tent And the Spirit of God descended on each and every one of them even the ones who had remained at home Joshua watched as even the two who had not come received God Spirit and began to prophesy Confused, Joshua yelled, We must make them stop! However, Moses had a smile on his face brighter than the sun. The wrinkles on his face lifted up as he laughed. Moses put his hand on Joseph's shoulder and said, Are you jealous for my sake? Don't be, for I would rather the entire camp be filled with prophets. Moses was elated, finally not bearing the burden of all these people alone. The next day, a tempest from the east sprang forth. The mighty winds raged and carried with it was a flock of quail. The quail ran through camp like a tsunami. For miles and miles there were quail The people had complained greatly to God about having no meat And now there was too much for them to eat Yet with the quail came a price A plague descended upon the people Sickness riddled the people of Israel for days And the anger of God was made known Their hearts had longed for Egypt To return to the bitterness of slavery All because they missed having meat The wrestling match between Israel and God continued, as did God's mercy, discipline, and blessings. As we open today's reading from Numbers 10, Moses is leading tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of Israelites through the desert. God never failed to take care of them, to provide for them. But once more, the people began to moan and groan and complain. They grew tired of the same food every day, the manna, though it was supernaturally delivered from heaven each day. They began to see only the negative and forgot about God's miraculous provision. They started to think about the meat they ate in Egypt and wished they had never left. Their ingratitude offended God and its wearing on Moses. The constant complaints and quarrels among the people chipped away at him, and so he did what he would always do, and that is to go to God. He's tired, he's irritated, and he doesn't hold back. He asks God why he's bringing all this trouble on him. He then reminds God that it was God that brought them out of Egypt. Moses says he's about to snap and do something stupid. Maybe you've been there. I know I have in the past. We're frustrated, afraid, and don't know what to do. It's chaos, so we can appreciate Moses' frustration. God doesn't chastise him or tell him he's not being a good leader. He comes to his rescue and instructs Moses to call 70 men to appoint his officers to help lighten the load. God tells Moses that the spirit that is upon Moses shall be upon them too so that they can lead others as officers and leaders of Israel This is a great plan It is the relief that Moses needed lest he burn out completely When we earnestly come to God for help He always delivers and He gives us the means to overcome our situation, as He did for Moses. But now God will deal with the ungrateful hearts of His people. He tells Moses that He's going to give them more meat than they can handle. Moses asked how God thinks He's going to do that. There are over 600,000 people. God's response is one that we should keep in mind when we think something sounds impossible. Numbers 11.23 says this, The Lord said to Moses, Is the Lord's power limited? Now you will see whether my word will come true for you or not. God tells Moses to stay faithful, to keep watching, and that's a good word for us. When things seem unlikely, improbable, or even impossible, we need to turn our eyes upon the Lord and see what God can do because God's power is not limited. God can do anything but fail. Just as God promised, He sent meat. Quail came down upon their camp. They were up to their knees in quail. The people spent the day gathering it, and there was no way they could eat all of it. Clearly, there was no doubt that God would provide and did provide for his people. It is so very important that we never mumble or grumble or complain about God's provision. God will always take care of his children. We should not complain or doubt that. Imagine how different this story would have been if people, the people of Israel, had just trusted God and turned to him. But as we end today's reading, the people are overwhelmed with meat, and then a plague hits that wrecks havoc on the entire camp, and it's all because they forgot that their God can do all things and that He is faithful to provide for our every need. Dear God, thank you for today's reminder that nothing is impossible for you, that you can do anything beyond what we can even think or imagine, that you abundantly supply our every need. Lord, may we never grumble, but rather be grateful for all that you have provided for us and to give thanks for the multitude of blessings that you have given to us. Amen. Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast. Before we go, I want to let you know about a unique e-book that's yours to download absolutely free today. It's called Breaking Free from Stress, and my prayer is that it will help you conquer the daily tasks and pressures and burdens that bring stress into your life. Download your free copy of Breaking Free from Stress today by visiting jackgram.org slash stress. That's jackgram.org slash stress. If today's reading moved you, the Pray.com app is where you can go deeper with daily prayers, Bible plans, and more. Download it free. Link in the description. This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human.
