What is THAT?

My husband pointed to the GPS screen sitting on the dash and said, "What is THAT?"  It had been days since we had used the gadget; in fact, not since our daughter had borrowed it for a trip she and her husband had taken a week or so prior.  And as is common to her sense of humor, she had changed us from a vehicle on the road to a huge bird soaring above it.  Wings flapping...

I lay my head back against the head rest and with a huge grin on my face, whispered, "Manna!"

Interestingly enough, "What is it?" is the question Israel's descendants asked when the dew lifted on their empty bellies.  That substance that appeared every morning (excluding Sabbaths) that the Hebrew children found themselves in the wilderness.  That flake that nourished them physically whether it was boiled, baked, fried or eaten raw.  That thing that reminded them that God was not only with them on their journey but providing for them every step of the way.

There are those scholars who believe that manna came out of nowhere, and for them to think anything else would discredit Scripture.  And there are those equally reputable men of God who think He may have taken something from nature and reproduced it every morning, giving them something they would have otherwise never thought to eat.  Which stirs my thinking. What makes something bread from heaven?  Is it the thing itself or the One who sends it?  I guess if we are looking for our manna to drop straight from the portals of heaven, then we just might go to bed hungry.  But if we begin to look for it the common things God sends our way, our souls (and bellies) might become full.

... like sitting with a couple I love over an unexpected lunch last week

... like seeing my grandson's joy when he first sees my face pop up on video chat

... like taking the time to smell an apple before eating it

... like watching the sun rise

... like hearing the voice of a dearly missed friend on the phone

Quite frankly, there's no end to the manna in our lives -- if we're just willing to look for it.

Ironically, the day I began gathering manna was the very day I had been crying out ... complaining, if you will ... to the Lord concerning my own wilderness experience.  Grumbling.  The very thing the children were doing when God told Moses He would send provision.

So why did He do it?  Exodus 16:12 tells us.  I have heard the grumbling ... in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.

So they might know Him. Could it be the same for us?

But here's the catch.  We can choose to continue our grumbling ... or we can pick up that thing and eat.

Just an ordinary moment...