No More Manna

For what seemed like forever the manna had been on the ground for the Hebrew pilgrims to gather each day.  But, all good things must end.  As we read the record in the book of Joshua, we read of the day when the Hebrews went out to gather what was no longer on the ground  (Joshua 5:10-12).  There was no warning.  There was no divine announcment that the manna distribution would end on a certain day.  It just happened and surely no one was more surprised than those who had spent a life time gathering a daily portion each day.  

It is an easy thing to take for granted the blessings of God.  We live under the assumption that the blessings of today will be there when tomorrow comes.  It never occurs to us that the blessing for the day may not be the same blessing we need for tomorrow.  The Hebrews who were just inside the land of Canaan were going to continue to know the blessings of God, but it would be different.  The plan to provide for them was the same, but the means for implementing the plan was going to be different.  It is not always easy for us to live in a world where change is taking place.  We would like for tomorrow to be like today and to be filled with the same sense of security that we have known in the past.  

The today in our life may seem like the day in which the blessings of God have disappeared.  What seems to be is never the case.  He is constantly bringing blessings into our life.  They may be coming to us through new people who have replaced some of the old ones, or through new ways of thinking about old things, or through some disappointment or loss we could have never imagined happening.  When we wake up one day and the blessings taken for granted no longer seem so obvious, it is time to pause and listen to the Spirit who is out there ahead of us leading us toward the unfolding plan of God.