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Do not be weary of Manna.

This phrase grabbed me. My Bible lay open in my lap, my journal within reach, coffee steamed on the end table … even my dog snoozed in her usual spot. I was reflecting on the “sameness” of my time with God when that pervasive thought—do not be weary of Manna—struck me.

Manna was food for the Israelites during their forty years in the desert—a sweet food, provided daily by God, gathered in the morning, not to be hoarded for the next day or it would rot. But how does the manna of the ancient Israelites relate to this 21st century woman?

Even for God’s chosen wanderers, manna meant far more than food in a desert. God provided it so they would know man does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.

And so it is with me. My manna is the Word that comes from the very mouth of God—both by scripture and by His Spirit—and it is my daily bread. Every day I take in His Word, reading and meditating on it. Every day, too, I ask for a filling of His Holy Spirit.

Oh, how quickly I turn rotten when I skip a morning in God’s Word. My mouth runs ahead of me and my temper flares. My thoughts fixate on mere trivial things, and before I know it, I am walking by my own feeble flesh.

I cannot depend on yesterday’s manna, and I must never be weary of this daily surrender to His Spirit. The “sameness” of my time with God is not the same as a rut. (The adversary is quick to deceive on this point.) Rather, daily time is necessary nourishment and sustenance, pouring Life into my life. The Father, Son, and Spirit are all involved as I take in His living and active Word. The Spirit is Counselor, the Father is Provider—raining down His Son from heaven. And my Jesus…well, He is the Word and the Bread of life. 

Jesus is the Manna from heaven!

Father, thank You for my need to depend daily on Your Word and Spirit.  May I never be weary of Manna, for to be weary of Manna is to be weary of You. Jesus, the more I spend time with You, the more I crave time with You. The daily discipline is not a daily drudgery, but sweet food for the soul. Thank You for being my Manna from heaven.

(Photo courtesy of morguefile and Kymme.)

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