Everyday Miracles

Everyday Miracles

Words of Faith 6-29-2020

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2020

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL

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Chapters 15-19 of Numbers document the offerings that were to be brought to the Lord on a regular basis and as covering for sin.  For our devotional purposes, we are moving ahead to Numbers chapter 20.

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Numbers 20

    In the first month the whole Israelite community arrived at the Desert of Zin, and they stayed at Kadesh. There Miriam died and was buried.

    [2] Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron. [3] They quarreled with Moses and said, "If only we had died when our brothers fell dead before the Lord! [4] Why did you bring the Lord's community into this desert, that we and our livestock should die here? [5] Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain or figs, grapevines or pomegranates. And there is no water to drink!"

       The tribes of Israel wandered for forty years before returning to Kadesh, where they had sent out the twelve spies.  They had come full circle and here Miriam died and was buried.  The death of Miriam must have been a significant event for Moses, Aaron, and the people.  As one of the key leaders, her passing signaled the end of an era.  Children that had been part of the Exodus were now 40 years older.  An entire generation had grown up in the wilderness, and another had been born there.

         Once again, the nation faced a crisis of faith over water.  It is possible that instead of seeing the passing of Miriam as the end of an era, many simply saw it as the beginning of the end, a reason to panic.  The people began to quarrel with Moses and Aaron.  The same sort of complaints came out that had been there 40 years earlier.

         We do not have a detailed record of the forty-year wandering. Still, we can probably assume that for 40 years, there had been no flashy miracles among these people other than the daily ritual of collecting manna in the desert.  We learn from other passages that the clothing and shoes of the people miraculously did not wear out during this time.  Their feet did not swell. Some would rate that as a high-class miracle!  But it appears that the miracles in the desert were much more subtle, a constant presence and protection.  We might call them “everyday” miracles.

           When the water crises came at Kadesh, it is easy to see how the people might begin to complain.  Many had not seen a flashy miracle in a long time, and some had never seen one.  It was easy to begin quarreling with these old leaders.

            I sometimes wonder if we don't get the same way.  We begin to take for granted the less flashy provision and protection of the Lord.  We reach a place where we have not seen a big "miracle" from the Lord in a long time or maybe never in our entire life.  It is easy to begin wondering if the Lord is really watching out for us. Oh, but He certainly is.

            On the days when I begin to wonder if the Lord is really there--  in the absence of flashy miracles and goosebumps--  I usually become aware of some of the things that might have happened, but did not.  In a world where a lot of bad things can happen, it does not take long for me to give thanks to the Lord for the auto accidents I did not have. I am grateful for the illnesses we did not have to treat, the drug rehab we did not need, and the losses we did not endure.  There are quiet blessings when clothing and cars last a long time, and our feet do not swell.  And when I experience difficulty or trial, I have to remember that there is purpose in that difficulty. Moses put it this way in one of his final addresses to the people--

           “Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.  He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.  Your clothes did not wear out, and your feet did not swell during these forty years. Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you” (Deuteronomy 8:1-5).

             Give thanks today.  The Lord is good.  His love endures forever.  Be grateful for everyday miracles.

             I give thanks to You, O Lord, for Your steadfast love and provision in my life.  Thank You for the everyday miracles of provision and protection.  Make me mindful of Your presence all this day.  In Jesus' name.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2004, 2020

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)       

2820 Business Center Blvd.

Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2010 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.