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No more manna

by Sheila Dougal  
1/21/2007 / Devotionals

"On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover. The day after the Passover, that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land: unleavened bread and roasted grain. The manna stopped the day after they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate of the produce of Canaan." Joshua 5:10-12

I've crossed over and have faced giants this past year, and I think may be facing even greater ones this year. Like the Israelites I've seen God faithfully lead me through my Jordan on dry land (Joshua 3), teach me to record the memory of God's faithfulness through journals and writings (Joshua 4), show me how to dedicate my kids to being set apart from others in teaching them Jesus' way through God's word and life (Joshua 5:1-8), and bring me through days of learning to live without manna. Of all those steps, none were easy to get (God's ways are higher and different than ours) each required faith, more confidence in God's word and less reliance on my work, but the one I've really had a hard time with is the ceasing of the manna.

Manna: the mother's milk of spiritual infancy (1 Peter 2:1-3), and the daily passive feeding of God's bread, His word fed to us by others. Manna appeared (Exodus 16:13-14), no one went out looking to hunt up some manna, it was just there. Paul said it's the stuff we feed on in assimilating the basics of life in Christ (Hebrews 5:12). Jesus said He is the manna that came down from heaven, the Bread of Life to everyone who would believe in Him (John 6:32-37). So why would there come a time in our journey with God where He would cause the manna to cease? The same reason why a man fighting a war no longer depends on mother's milk for strength; in fact he's dependant on more. If he doesn't eat, he's not going to be strong, if he's not strong he may be injured, die or even be a cause for the whole army to loose a battle.

When the manna ceases, the mother's milk is no longer enough. Now the full grown warrior has to eat on the food he's provided in the enemy's territory. The word "fight" in the Hebrew, found in Joshua and other passages concerning the battles Israel fought to drive the enemies out of the Promised Land, also means to eat. When they fought, they ate. The supply for their growth and strength came at the defeat of the enemy. It's not that they stopped depending on the Lord though; in fact the stakes were higher. Their enemies were too large for them by all accounts, if God didn't deliver, they were finished.

This is where I find myself spiritual towards the end of 2006 and now in the start of this New Year. The manna has ceased. My Father who supplied my milk growing up in the "desert" now gives me the honor of seeing His power supply me a feast in the presence of my enemies. Like I said, I think this is the hardest part. Sometimes I find myself crying, "Father! I just want to be fed, I just want to passively sit there and take the Word in. I want to retreat and nurse." But my Faithful Father encourages me, "Come to My table. Come and feast on more than milk. Come and enjoy a feast even in the presence of your enemies." (Psalm 23)

Though initially I want to whine and whimper, the more I accept the invitation, the more I dig into the feast, eating the produce that comes from the battle where God defeats my enemies, and His word is even more sure to me; the more passive feedings of milk just aren't enough. I don't need less, I need more. No more manna, now I need meat

Sheila Dougal is a 32 year old wife and mother living in Goodyear, Arizona with her husband James and their two sons. She enjoys serving in the women's and children's ministries at her local church, and writing on her website www.wifeofvalor.com.

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