Someone recently asked me how I chose the name of this ministry. Since I accepted Jesus as my savior at the age of seven, I have had a long life full of moments that felt like God was giving me a wonderful glimpse of His glory. The story below is one of the examples where He did the same thing for someone else.
The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt. In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.” So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “In the evening you will know that it was the Lord who brought you out of Egypt, and in the morning you will see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we, that you should grumble against us?” Moses also said, “You will know that it was the Lord when he gives you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the morning, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord.” Exodus 16:1-8
The children of Israel had been in slavery for 400 years, but the only part of that statement that mattered to these people was the fact that they had never known a time when they were not enslaved. They had only been free for about six weeks when they began to grumble about their food.
When I read this story, I am surprised that they were not just in awe of God’s goodness at this point. Yet I think about myself and realize I am just like them.
I complain about things when there is every reason to be thankful instead. In the middle of their whining, God remained true to his character. He forgave them. He provided yet another reason for them to trust him. He gives us reasons to love him more and more as though the fact that he is God were not enough.
The name of this ministry came from verse seven “and in the morning you will see the glory of the Lord.” My prayer is that each action of this ministry will declare the Glory of the Lord. I have experienced His lovingkindness over and over again.
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