Now You Shall See...

It is incredible to me how I can read the same passage of scripture over and over--yet it is always new. I feel like the Holy Spirit is quickening new things to me or God teaching me more about my humanity and His power every single time I open the cover of His word. 

I have been working through a Bible plan and recently found myself in Numbers 11. In this chapter, we find the Israelites complaining and weeping over all the things the had lost because they were following Moses around in the wilderness. They longed for the things they knew from their past. They were lamenting over the foods they were provided with in Egypt--meats and fresh vegetables in particular. It got to a point (and remember that there were COUNTLESS Israelites by now) that the Lord grew incredibly frustrated with them. To be honest, I get frustrated just reading about it!

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It grew to be so intense and such a weight that Moses asks the Lord to kill him because “(he) alone (was) not able to carry all the people, because it is too burdensome for (him)” (N. 11:14). He was extremely clear in his communication with the Lord. "Why have you been so hard on your servant? And why have I not found favor in Your sight, that You have laid the burden of all this people on me?" (Numbers 11:11). He believed that it would be better to cease from existing than bear the weight of an entire nation on his shoulders. Truthfully, I can't blame him. To have hundreds of thousands of people looking to you for every need or to answer every question would be completely overwhelming. I find myself at a loss in trying to help care for the needs of the people around me. I cannot imagine the weight of Moses' burden. 

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But, the interesting thing about this chapter is the back and forth between God and Moses. I always find it interesting the dialogues and interactions recorded between the Creator and the created. But in this particular chapter, it is a series of events where the people complain, God grows angry, Moses grows frustrated and wants to quit. But right as Moses comes to the end of his rope, when there is no way forward, God MOVES. Instead of removing Moses from authority, God told Moses to gather 70 men around him and to "have them take their stand there with you" in the tent of meeting (11:16). "Then I will com down and speak with you there, and I will take of the Spirit who is upon you, and will put HIM upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you will not bear it all alone" (Numbers 11:17). 

He then told Moses to tell the people that he would satisfy their cries for the physical satisfaction until "it comes loathsome to you because you have rejected the Lord who is among you and have wept before Him, saying "Why did we ever leave Egypt?" (11:20). They craved for the things of the past even though He was satisfying their needs and had made His dwelling place in their midst. He was providing every single day, yet they craved the past. 

Yet God responds with a profound statement. 

“Is the Lord’s power limited? NOW you shall see whether 

My word will come true for you or not” (Numbers 11:23).

Instead of removing Moses from the place he was set, God raised up people around Moses and poured out His Spirit on them. Instead of allowing Moses to hide or run, He provided a way forward despite what seemed impossible. This calls to us in examining our own lives. Is the Lords power limited” in today? Scripture is called the Word of God because God cannot lie—therefore it is THE Truth. Do we keep looking to the “logical outcome” of situations when God is saying “Now you shall see whether My word will come true for you or not” (v23)? Do we search scripture for what He says and then TAKE Him at His Word? 

So what are you running from today? What weight are you carrying today that seems as if the burden will crush you? What do you keep trying to give back to God because it's painful and He seems to be letting you hold it longer? How often do we find ourselves overwhelmed by the lack of resources, our own abilities, the weight of responsibilities, or even just LIFE? Moses response was “please kill me at once”. We may wish for this portion to be taken away, this season, this weight, this “thorn in the flesh”—we want it gone *NOW*. We want to run away as quick and as hard as we can. But what if we choose take Him at His word? His power is not limited. Go into a quite place and seek His face, just as Moses cried out. Search His unshaken, immovable, tested and proven true Words. Find the promises of God in scripture and take Him at His Word. THIS is how we strengthen our faith. We believe His Word and submit to His purposes—even if it includes trials—because we trust HIM. So in your place of frustration or weakness, look for His hand to provide a way *forward*. His power is not limited, nor His hand too short to save.