In our scripture readings for Wilderness Sunday, the whole congregation of the Israelites are travelling through the wilderness, and that means they are hungry and thirsty. They doubt God's willingness to provide for them in such an inhospitable place, and they express regret in leaving the food-and-water- secure condition of slavery in Egypt. And they complain vigorously to God's appointed leaders, Moses and Aaron. But God does miraculously provide for his people – manna from heaven and water from the rock, so that their freedom is preserved, and so that they are trained in the way of life that will help them succeed once they reach the promised land. And God provides for US, in this SPIRITUALLY inhospitable place, the bread from heaven that is the body of his Son Jesus, so that our freedom is preserved, and we can succeed in his kingdom....
Each year, the national organization of food banks sends out a survey in March to collect data on food bank usage and demographics. And for some reason, the survey also asks food bank directors their opinions on potential governmental policies, that could impact food bank usage, based on their local circumstances. This past year, for the first time I can remember, one of the potential policies was “expand job training options for adults,” which would INCREASE the freedom of clients, empowering them to make more income and purchase their own food. ALL of the other policy suggestions would DECREASE freedom: “expand employment insurance, implement guaranteed basic income, increase supports for new immigrants, increase pension amounts for seniors, increase supports for people with disabilities.” Each of these policies would make the clients MORE reliant on others, and make the others more likely to need the food bank themselves due to increased taxation. Because when the food supply gets tight, the first instinct is to move toward the security of slavery....
The food supply was tight in the wilderness of Sin, for the whole congregation of the Israelites in our scripture readings this morning. And the water supply was tight when they got to Rephidim. The people, who had just been miraculously delivered THROUGH the Red Sea, somehow found it hard to believe that God would provide for them in an inhospitable wilderness.
And they hearkened back to two months previous with fondness, when their Egyptian masters made sure they had plenty of water and plenty of meat, so they wouldn't collapse under the brutal load of their labours. “Remember those fleshpots and all the bread they fed us? Good times....”
And they took out their frustration on the leadership – causing Moses to declare to God that the people were almost ready to stone him. But as Moses correctly states, the people's quarrel was not with him, but rather, with God. And even when God solved the food problem with the miraculous provision of manna, the people tried to break the sabbath rules attached to manna. Worst of all, after all the miracles they had experienced, after hearing the promise of receiving the land of the Caananites, after seeing the shekhinah, the glory of the Lord in the cloud, they still questioned, “Is the Lord among us or not?”
That's the question that Satan plants in our minds, when water is tight and there has been no rain for 3 weeks in August, “Is the Lord among us or not?” That's the question that we wrestle with when we walk out of the grocery store with $100 worth of groceries...in one tiny bag. That's the question we ponder when the trifecta of low oil prices, low cattle prices, and low grain prices kick in simultaneously. “Is the Lord among us or not?” WILL God provide in the upcoming inhospitable circumstances? It's so easy to forget ALL of the times in the past when, OF COURSE he has.
And it's so easy to move towards slavery when things get tight. The slavery of the mountains of debt that seem so easy to sign up for. The slavery of the bottle or of the joint. The slavery of relinquishing our agency, of refusing to listen to God's directions to collect the manna he places in our path, and instead, placing ourselves as a burden on others. There is a massive difference between, “I would appreciate some help,” and “it is your responsibility to feed me.” - one reflects freedom, and one reflects slavery.
And the other thing that is easy when things get tight...is to complain...vigorously! We might think that the object of our complaint is our prime minister, or our premier, or our M.D. council, or the American president – but what are they? In the end, our dissatisfaction with our economic situation rests with God, something to keep in mind as we approach Thanksgiving Sunday. We still have more to give thanks for, than our ancestors could have possibly dreamt.