Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal. Matthew 6:19
What do toilet paper and manna have in common? All of us are prone to collect things, maybe to the point of somewhat hoarding, and it was evident when the Coronavirus hit the public’s ears. People were buying all the toilet paper they could get their hands on. As a result, if one ran out, there was none to be had at the store.
God knows us through and through. He sees the fears that can sometimes be the driving force behind our actions. I wonder if that is why He put a limit on how much manna the Israelite children could collect in the wilderness. The instructions were to gather only about two dry quarts per person each day. If they amassed more, it would be rotten the next. However, the day before Sabbath, they could accumulate twice the amount to free them from work on their Holy day, and the manna was just fine. They always had the exact amount that was needed to thrive.
God wanted their total trust, their full obedience, and their complete devotion. By putting a limit, the children had to look to the Father for all their needs. They could not hoard and stack manna up to the brim of their tents placing their trust in their provisions. Ultimately, God would need to be their Jehovah Jireh, the only provider.
God did provide for us a way of salvation through His son, Jesus Christ. God also loves us enough to give us precisely what we need in our physical lives. All He wants from us is trust, obedience, and loving devotion. By trusting God in all things, we will thrive spiritually.
So what do toilet paper and manna have in common? The answer lies in the question: “Are we laying up treasure here on earth or in heaven?” Where our treasure is, there is our heart. Earthly treasures rot, but heavenly treasures are eternal. When we trust God to be our only provider, we will be at peace even when we are down to our last roll of toilet paper.
Thank you, Father God, for being our Jehovah-jireh, our provider. Through Christ, we pray, Amen.
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