“And the Lord said to Moses, ‘I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, “At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.”‘
“In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, ‘What is it?’ For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, ‘It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat. This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Gather of it, each one of you, as much as he can eat. You shall each take… according to the number of the persons that each of you has in his tent.’” And the people of Israel did so. They gathered, some more, some less. But when they measured it with an omer, whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat. And Moses said to them, ‘Let no one leave any of it over till the morning.’ But they did not listen to Moses. Some left part of it till the morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them. Morning by morning they gathered it, each as much as he could eat; but when the sun grew hot, it melted.” Exodus 16:11-21
The Lord was definitive with Moses about His miraculous provision of manna for the masses. And He followed through exactly, supplying ample sustenance each morning as He’d promised. “But when the sun grew hot, it melted.” As long as they did as instructed, and gathered early in the morning, they would be satisfied for that day. If they delayed, or out of distrust hoarded some, it either dissolved or rotted into uselessness.
For a number of reasons, we suffer melted manna too. We might laze a while, turning in our beds until the opportunity to gather what the Lord has prepared is missed. We may choose to focus on other things until we get ‘a better time,’ and by then, the sun is too hot. We might give other priorities first place, thinking we’ll make time later, and the heat of the days hypnotizes us into a siesta. We might also think we can glut one day, or have Sunday carry us through the week, but manna doesn’t store or sustain that way. The rotation of busyness and days around hot sun spoils that plan.
We may not always be hungry, or particularly like the taste of God’s food, but it’s vital to our spiritual nourishment and growth that we partake, regularly. His heavenly nutrients satisfy in ways we may not even today understand, but will be called upon later when needed for specific wisdom, a sense of direction, or a test of strength.
How disciplined are we to taste and savor daily that He is good and enough? When He supplies, are we faithful to receive? (Psalm 34:8; Matthew 6:11; Philippians 4:19)
Father, feed me early, and sustain me with Your heavenly daily bread for all You have for me to do.
As the rain and snow 