From the Deacon’s Desk 08/01/2021

Dear Friends:

The reading from Exodus 16:2-4,12-15 today has always made me chuckle just a bit. While the Israelite people were in slavery in Egypt they begged God to get them out of slavery. When Moses got them out of slavery then they complained that they did not have enough food. They said to Moses and Aaron that it would be better if they died in Egypt rather than die of famine in the desert.

When the Lord God heard what they were grumbling about, he sent all the quail they could eat every evening. There were more quail than anyone could ever use; in the morning when the dew dried up there were flakes that could be crushed and made into a flour that could be made into bread. The Israelites had plenty of food from that day forward. They were happy for a while, but soon they complained that they were tired of quail and the bread made from the flakes of flour God sent them.

Isn’t that just like humans? We get what we ask for and then we find out that we are not too happy with what we have been given. Sometimes we are never satisfied are we? I think we can gather from this story that perhaps we need to be happy with the simpler things in life. It might be simple food or a simple vacation or perhaps trying to simplify our lives with prayer and good works. I believe that if we truly work at it, we can have simpler lives.  I also believe we will be happier and more content. It might just be worth a try, don’t you think?

Peace and All Good!

Deacon Jim