Psalm 78:26–32 26He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven: And by his power he brought in the south wind. 27He rained flesh also upon them as dust, And feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea: 28And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, Round about their habitations. 29So they did eat, and were well filled: For he gave them their own desire; 30They were not estranged from their lust. But while their meat was yet in their mouths, 31The wrath of God came upon them, And slew the fattest of them, And smote down the chosen men of Israel. 32For all this they sinned still, And believed not for his wondrous works.
What if God gives you what you crave?
Garth Brooks thanked God for unanswered prayers, but what if he answers yours? What if he grants your insistent pleas?
Have you ever considered the possibility that what you pursue is not what you need?
Is it possible that the “more” you’re after and the “something different” you seek won’t satisfy?
What if your demands are detrimental?
Sometimes God protects us from ourselves but sometimes he lets us have our way. That is what today’s passage from the Psalms shows us.
Psalm 78:29 So they did eat, and were well filled: For he gave them their own desire;
Israel in the wilderness became dissatisfied with the miraculous manna God had provided. He had sent bread from heaven, but they had grown sick of it. They had lost their taste for Angel’s food, so they murmured and complained, desiring meat for their wilderness table.
Numbers 11:4 And the mixt multitude that was among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat?
They complained about the manna and called out for meat so persistently that Moses came to God in frustration. Look at what he said…
Numbers 11:13–14 13Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people? for they weep unto me, saying, Give us flesh, that we may eat. 14I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me.
So, God answered their prayers.
Eventually the Lord gave them the food they craved but told them before the first bite was taken that they would soon grow tired of this blessing too.
Numbers 11:18–20 18…ye shall eat flesh: for ye have wept in the ears of the Lord, saying, Who shall give us flesh to eat? for it was well with us in Egypt: therefore the Lord will give you flesh, and ye shall eat. 19Ye shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days, nor twenty days; 20But even a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils, and it be loathsome unto you: because that ye have despised the Lord which is among you, and have wept before him, saying, Why came we forth out of Egypt?
God gave them what they wanted knowing that it would make them sick.
Eventually, they were punished for their ingratitude and lustfulness because they were never satisfied and always wanting something more.
Psalm 78:31–32 31The wrath of God came upon them, And slew the fattest of them, And smote down the chosen men of Israel. 32For all this they sinned still, And believed not for his wondrous works.
God answering their prayer was not a reward but a reprimand!
What is my point?
I think the Lord has given me a few.
It is unfortunately part of our sinful, fallen nature to want the fruit from the one forbidden tree. Like little children we insist that the only toy that will satisfy is the one we don’t have. We are often unthankful and covetous and pray for things we don’t need, won’t satisfy and might even cause us harm.
Let’s be careful about what we crave.
Let’s be thankful for what we have.
Let’s pray for what we want, but trust our good God to answer with an occasional “no” since he knows the difference between our greeds and our needs, what will help us and what will hurt us.
Scripture readings for 6/30/20