Whining and Complaining

It is amazing to me, the different things that I get out of reading God's word. I have just finished reading Numbers, so I will try to pull some of the different things out that I have seen. I will try not to be scattered, but there is a lot of information that in just one sitting it may be hard to cover, but I will try.

Throughout the wondering in the wilderness the Israelites saw many different miracles and felt God's wrath against sin. They would praise Him for saving them and the very next day they would turn against Him. He would save them from certain death, then they would turn right around and complain against Him. 11:18-20, "The LORD has heard your whining and complaints:" (about not having any meat), "You will eat it for a whole month until you gag and are sick of it. For you have rejected the LORD, who is here among you, and you have complained against Him."

It is funny that this is the verse that I wrote. This is why: Right when I finished typing this verse my husband came in and interrupted me, for the fourth time, just since I had sat down to write this morning. The fourth time was the last straw. He asked me if his shirt was okay and that he had to have his photo taken this morning. I got up, had him take the shirt off and I proceeded to iron it. As I was ironing I was going over all of the interruptions and complaining about them, because to me none of them were that important, except this one... Then God spoke to me, from my reading this morning... Now if that didn't hit home I do not know what will. So now that I have returned to "my time" on the computer, I sit thinking how easily it is for us to whine and complain against God. In my mind I was not complaining against God, I was complaining against my husband. But this is not true, I was whining and complaining against God. The Israelites did not intentionally complain against God. They were complaining to Moses, but God took it that they were complaining against Him, because truthfully they were.

How thankful I am that it did not take me long to realize what I was doing. For I was not even half way through with the ironing and God's word was convicting me. Honestly, this could have ruined my entire day, used to it would have. For a moment this morning I was feeding my selfishness and He was listening to me complain against Him. Thankfully, He prepared me this morning for this exact occasion, so that I could listen to Him and not keep sinning. Because I was in His word, His words came to me when I needed them.

I have lived a life time in the wilderness feeding my every sinful desire, until I was gagging and sick of it. I pray I no longer have to learn from Him the hard way. This morning was easy, for I started my day with Him talking to me. He has been with me my entire life, but I had to gag on my sin before I would listen to Him. Now it is different, because I truly crave Him and want Him to direct my path. I no longer have to be so overwhelmed in my own sin, before I will listen to Him. I want to hear Him and I want to be free to obey Him. If we are willing to listen, He will talk to us when we need it the most, so that we do not ruin our day or worse, our life...