The Manna Ceased
This morning as I read my daily Bible reading, the Lord spoke to me through Joshua 5:12. It is a simple verse, but the message is profound. It says, "The manna ceased the day after they had eaten the produce of the land..." Just think about that for a minute. There was a whole generation that had grown up eating manna for 40 years. Then, it ceased as abruptly as it has started. That was a big adjustment with huge ramifications.
No longer could they just walk out in the morning and gather their food from the ground. Now, they would have to harvest the food of Canaan. Later, they would have to grow their own. The manna was God's special provision for a special time of need. Now, His promise of giving them a "land flowing with milk and honey" had come true, so the manna ceased. God was still going to bless them, just in a different way. There would be a variety in their diet that had not been there for all of their wilderness journey. Also, there would be more personal responsibility.
I know a lot of people who want manna all of their lives. They want God to give them what they need in a supernatural way. It works that way for a while at times, but most of the time we have to trust Him and do our part to receive what He has for us. We have to do some work. We have to be responsible. God is still caring, but He knows that it does us good to trust Him and to work for what we have. I hope we all can rejoice in the God who sends the manna and that we can also rejoice in the God who takes it away. It is the Same God, and He cares for us just as much either way.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Joshua 6-8.
No longer could they just walk out in the morning and gather their food from the ground. Now, they would have to harvest the food of Canaan. Later, they would have to grow their own. The manna was God's special provision for a special time of need. Now, His promise of giving them a "land flowing with milk and honey" had come true, so the manna ceased. God was still going to bless them, just in a different way. There would be a variety in their diet that had not been there for all of their wilderness journey. Also, there would be more personal responsibility.
I know a lot of people who want manna all of their lives. They want God to give them what they need in a supernatural way. It works that way for a while at times, but most of the time we have to trust Him and do our part to receive what He has for us. We have to do some work. We have to be responsible. God is still caring, but He knows that it does us good to trust Him and to work for what we have. I hope we all can rejoice in the God who sends the manna and that we can also rejoice in the God who takes it away. It is the Same God, and He cares for us just as much either way.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Joshua 6-8.