Exodus 17:1-7  Once again the Israelites are faced with a problem..  They have journeyed to Rephidim and there is no water.  Yes, God had provided water at Marah. Yes, He provided manna and quail every day. But, when faced with this problem.. they quarreled with Moses.  Moses called them on this.. "Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?" 

There were two possible responses to this problem.. faith or failure, failure to believe that God would do what He promised.  This was a serious problem.  The people needed water. Over a million people, plus their animals.. could not live without water.  But, they did not stop to pray... to seek God.. to wait on His provision.  Instead, they got angry at Moses. They were ready to stone him, Moses says.

The Lord told Moses to go to the rock at Horeb, strike the rock with his staff, and receive the water that would come from it.

How do we react to critical problems?  Even to small trials?  Do we blame others?  Or do we seek the Lord ?

Jesus taught that we should not be anxious for our lives. Matthew 6 gives us the teaching from the Mount... the Father knows what we need.  Look at the birds.  Look at the lilies of the field.  The Lord knows more than we do what we really need.  Jesus tells us, don't be anxious .. "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you."   He tells us to ask, to seek, and to knock.  He reminds us that we have a good Father, Who knows our needs and will supply us with what is good.

Andrew Murray writes this:  "Before you pray, bow quietly before God, just to remember and realize who He is, how near He is, how certainly He can and will help.  Just be still before Him, and allow His Holy Spirit to waken and stir up in your soul the childlike disposition of absolute dependance and confident expectation. Wait upon God as a living Being, as the living God, who notices you, and is just longing to fill you with His salvation. Wait on God til you know you have met Him; prayer will then become so different." 

What if Israel had learned to have faith.. to wait on God before they started picking a fight with Moses?  What if we learned to live by this kind of faith.. taking every problem straight to the Lord, trusting in His love and faithfulness?

Father, help us to live in this way.. in complete dependence upon You with confident expectation that You see us, know us, and will never forsake us. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.