Rotting Manna
“Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.”Exodus 16:4 (KJV)
In the wilderness God rained bread from heaven, with one instruction: “the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day.” And Moses added, “Let no man leave of it till the morning.”
Some of them did anyway. Maybe they were afraid there wouldn’t be any tomorrow. “Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank.” The extra didn’t make them safer. It rotted.
Overwork can be a kind of manna-hoarding. The extra hours we cram in out of fear, just in case, often don’t make us safer either. They spoil things: our rest, our families, our peace with God.
God said the manna was a test, “that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.” He still provides daily. The question is whether we trust him enough to stop gathering when we have enough for today.
Read it yourself
Read Exodus 16:16–30. What was different about the sixth day, and what happened to the manna kept for the sabbath?
Is there work you do out of fear rather than faithfulness?
Lord, you give daily bread. Help me work faithfully, and stop when it’s enough. Amen.