Exodus 17:1-7
From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. The people quarrelled with Moses, and said, ‘Give us water to drink.’ Moses said to them, ‘Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?’ But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, ‘Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?’ So Moses cried out to the Lord, ‘What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.’ The Lord said to Moses, ‘Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.’ Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarrelled and tested the Lord, saying, ‘Is the Lord among us or not?’
Reflection
I work in maintenance. For the most part I work to support and manage a group of highly skilled technicians who maintain and repair machine tools, lasers, metal spray, water-jet, chemical cleaning/stripping and NDT equipment. The technicians possess the needed skills to troubleshoot and repair. I assist with any knowledge I may be able to add and provide organization and the evaluation of the maintenance work and the priorities of such work. All of this equipment is used to support the repair of aviation engines and components.
There is more to maintenance than this side of the business as well. There are the buildings, the roofs, the HVAC systems, the material handling and the safety of all the employees. And as well there are all of the distribution systems including electrical, water, gas and of course what we all need the plumbing that removes human and factory waste.
With this in mind... I hear complaints! I hear complaints all day long! Most of the time... in the 90% range, equipment is available for use and running. This percentage stays high because all of the effort that is placed by the maintenance department upon preventive and predictive maintenance. This is work that is done to keep the equipment in running order and minimize unexpected repairs.
Even with this... for the most part... all I hear are complaints! I don't hear about how the equipment is running and capable of running even while sitting idle. I hear the complaints that a "hot" part can only be run on one of many machines that are capable of running this "hot" part that are not set up to run this "hot" part and the machine that production needs to run the "hot" part did not function just like expected.
So... I hear complaints! Hurry up and get this one machine running... the only machine set up out of many machines that can run the "hot" part. When will someone arrive? What's wrong with the equipment? Can you make it run in 15 minutes? How long? Hurry!
And then I think of Moses. People complain. They complain about the "hot" part not running. They complain it is too hot or too cold. Sometimes both of the complainers are standing in the same place... one is too hot and the other is too cold. The toilet doesn't flush to their liking. The desk drawer is stuck. The roof leaks. The water tastes funny. On and on and on and on... people complain. Hurry up!!! I can't take this or that or whatever the complaint of the day may be any longer! I'm going home! People complain!!!
Like Moses... sometimes I just have to stop and think... "What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me."
And then it hits me. I complain as well! Just look at it! Look at the past few paragraphs... my complaints!!!
We all complain and cry and pout and shout and want something to go away or to just get better. We all complain and I think the complaints are for sure directed to one another but they are also directed towards God. We complain to God all the time! We want everything to be easy and fun and no problem.
But we live in a world full of sin, death, the devil and problems. We brought this whole thing upon ourselves. God didn't do all of this to us... we did it to ourselves! And we complain! All of us complain and whine and moan and groan about this situation or this person or this machine or whatever!
And then... and then... we find God right there with us. God listening to our complaints. God coming to us in the midst of the mess I made and in the center of the mess you made. God comes to show us something different from the life of complaining. God shows us how to accept what we have been given. God show us how to walk through this world of illness, sin, death, complaints and sorrow to be with him now and forever. God comes to us even when we are the most bitter people on the planet and shows us Jesus.
God comes to us and saves us from any and all complaints we could ever come up with by coming to us in flesh and blood and in the body and spirit of Jesus to live, to suffer and to die for us that we may look forward to an everlasting relationship of love for God and love for one another.
Yes God comes to us and gives us the refreshing water of a renewed and remarkable life right here and right now... even in the midst of our complaints and sin.
Think about it a while... so now what do you have to complain about?
Let's live in the joy and hope of our saving God that always comes in the midst of our complaints and has given us a new frame of mind and a new spirit of love for God and for all the other complainers we live with each day.
Music
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtdC4If0tyM
No matter what... God still thinks you're the sweetest baby in town.
Prayer
Lord, forgive me when I complain and moan and groan. Open my eyes to your gracious salvation and the joy that only you can give, that I may joyfully live with all the complainers of this world in the love of Christ Jesus... today... tomorrow... and forever. --- Amen
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