12 “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.'”
For some people the idea of grumbling to the Lord is an impossible thing. We shouldn’t express our anger, they say, or our disappointment or questioning. But we read in the text that the Lord heard their grumblings and has moved on their behalf. For the Israelites, they are newborn babies in their relationship to the Lord. They have been complaining for years about the working conditions in Egypt. Their natural response is complaint. It will take them a while before they learn a better response, like prayer. But the Lord knows where they are spiritually. Their grumblings are connected to a breakdown in relationship. He knows they are not mature, so He responds to their cry for help, voiced as a complaint. They needed water, and he provided it. They now need food, and He is going to provide that as well. They are in a desert after all. No Walmart in sight! The Lord is not afraid of our honest feelings, whatever they may be. He wants us to be honest with Him. This is especially true since He knows the thoughts and intents of our hearts! We can’t hide it from Him, so we might as well bring our honest feelings into His presence. The Psalms are filled with these negative emotions expressed to the Lord. The Lord just wants us to be honest with Him. If we are frustrated or angry, it is OK to bring that into the Lord’s presence. He is not scared by our honesty, as we as humans so often are. The Lord will provide in those moments of honesty. But it can be scary for us to even voice those emotions to ourselves. We can end up scaring ourselves, let alone other people around us when we express these types of emotions. But the Lord doesn’t back away. So go ahead and express those emotions to the Lord. He can handle it.
The Arnold Journey 