Third Sunday in Lent: Old Testament, Exodus 17:1-7                              

Exodus 17:1-7

Whenever I cross the desert of these pages in Exodus, I try to think of the time when I was most thirsty in my life. I remember as a high school student, playing a round of golf in the heat and humidity of a Michigan summer’s day. There was no caddy, no pull cart nor was there a riding cart either. We were midway through the back nine of eighteen, the sun was at its peak and there was little to no breeze. We didn’t carry bottled water in those days. It was just brutal.

The Old Testament people following Moses seemed to be in a similar stead and let Moses know how they felt in no uncertain terms. It was hot. They were tired. And there was no water in sight. I grumbled on hole 15 and I am sure the people of God were in a sand trap from which they could not escape.

But there was a rock. That’s right, a rock. Moses had his staff, the symbol of God’s authority and with that staff Moses had done mighty works in Egypt. It was an impossible situation and the means God had designed to bring relief seemed ridiculous. And that’s being kind. But God will have His way and will do whatever is necessary to teach His people that trusting Him is where life is found. Walking sticks, rocks and blistering heat. All worked in the hands of the LORD as a brush is wielded by a great painter. The final end was one in which God put His glory on display in yet another rescue of His people. 

It seems we should be learning that God will do what He says He will do. As Martin Luther wrote centuries ago: “Faith is the prerequisite before everything. If one has faith, all other things gush forth from it, like water from the rock and stone.”

Lord, may we be satisfied with the water You provide. Amen!