Numbers 14:26 And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 14:27 How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me. 14:28 Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you:
6. Watch what you meditate:
Explained in part 1 was that to complain means to meditate. To complain is simply to express your dissatisfaction.
The word transliterated into murmur here is lûn. It means to grumble, complain, murmur.
On an unrelated note, lûn is pronounced as loon. Could this be where the English words loon and lunatic trace their roots?
Jokes aside, looking at this nation’s journey to the Promised Land, I see they were nothing short of insane people!
The thing that baffles me the most about the Israelites in the wilderness is their ability to complain! They started complaining three days after crossing the Red Sea; just 3 days (Ex. 15)! Chapter after chapter there was a complaint, if it wasn’t about water, it was about food, and even when God rained manna, there was a complaint that it wasn’t spicy enough – they wanted meat. There were quite a number, it was like a talent of theirs, a skill they excelled at.
But I believe the main issue that displeased God was what they said. Human beings are hardly satisfied, but it’s not the desire for more that is troublesome, it is how that desire is expressed.
When the Israelites complained they usually said something about “dying in the wilderness” , “better situation in Egypt” , or “going back to Egypt;” or all at once. Their complaints, their musings, their meditations – those got to God! For we know that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks; and these expressions commonly came out of them immediately, implying that they thought about them often and filled their hearts and at the slightest provocation of pressure their meditations couldn’t help bursting forth. It is what comes out of a man that makes him unclean.
Their confession so angered God that God wanted to wipe them out instantly! Moses had to plead with God again to forgive them. In case anyone wonders whether God has a point of no return, these guys found God’s last straw (Num. 14:22). God decided they would spend an extra 40yrs in the desert and that generation would never enter the Land. And all this because of complaining.
What is that you keep saying that blocks you from entering your promised land?
What do you declare when you’re under pressure? What’s abundant in your heart that quickly comes out? How does your tongue react to your circumstances?
The eight spies looked at their strength and size and spoke what they were; the other two remembering Whom they had declared different. The Israelites forgot the God who parted the Red Sea and focused on the giants, cities and citizens in the land.
As Num. 14:28, God can give you exactly what you say. If God decided to give you everything you declared, would you still be alive today? (A swipe at those whose laughter is usually “#dead”)
The opposite of complaining is praising. The key is in appreciating all you currently have while you desire more. God has already planned more but what you say now can affect it. It’s not about the situation, it’s about what you say in reaction to it
Choose instead to praise God. Remember that God is with you. Remember the miracles God has done for you. Thank God for the fruits you have sampled from your promised land. Watch what you meditate. Guard your heart. Think good for your life. Speak life!
#BeEdified
Larry d’Crazie