Thirsty Yet?

Exodus 17:1-7

Lent is about 25% of the way through. This is usually when things begin to get a little more difficult in keeping with any commitments made for this 40-day journey and the temptation to give up begins to set in.

I'm not sure I mentioned what I'm giving up for Lent, and if I did I'm sorry for repeating myself. Sweets, especially the occasional dessert, is something I look forward to after having a satisfying dinner and when cuddled warmly with my wife just before bed. Those are the times when a cookie covered with some ice cream tastes so good.

But, since I gave up sweets for Lent I'm not able to satisfy that craving. Instead I watch as commercials on TV show the happiness people feel when biting into a smooth, sweet piece of chocolate. Ohhh...the temptations.

However, stories like today's one help to keep my commitments in focus. Moses is leading the Hebrew people through the wilderness, having left Egypt with only the things they could carry. By the time this story is told the people are running very low, if not have already run out of some basic needs.

The people are running out of water, and I'm certain are becoming concerned for their survival as well as the survival of their families and livestock. They are traveling through the desert and water is scarce, if not non-existent. As a result the people become scared, and when a crowd begins to fear for its survival bad things begin to happen. A mob mentality ensues and the anger becomes focused on Moses.

Moses is to blame for the demise of all the people who decided to follow him.

Who are we starting to blame for the things which happen to us?

A lot of times when things begin to go wrong in our lives we find someone or something to blame. Never mind that the decisions we made along the way have an impact on our current situation, it has to be someone or something else's fault we're in the place we are. Perhaps we even become like the Hebrew people in today's story and demand that something be done to make our situation better, no matter who we hurt in order to get it.

One thing the people in today's story forgets is that Moses is one of them. He, too, is journeying through the desert. He, too, is without water. He, too, is afraid for his life - not just from the lack of water, but from the anger of the people. This is when Moses turns to the one thing that can help them get through this difficult path on the journey: God.

God is compassionate and offers Moses a way to help the people find peace and continued hope to go on. Perhaps if the people would have asked God for the same help, instead of blaming and accusing and threatening Moses, the water they were desperately seeking would have come sooner.

A part of the journey of Lent is to take a look at where our relationships are. Are we thirsty and blaming others for our lack of water, or are we reaching out to others and God to allow their compassion to rescue us. The choice really is yours, which choice will you make?