March 18 Promises Kept
Numbers 14
And the Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people despise me?
And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them?” Numbers 14: 11
What the Lord said to Moses could easily be something He is wondering today! “There is nothing new under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 1:9) The Lord had delivered His people out of slavery and drowned an army of Egyptians that pursued them. He had made a place for His presence to reside and the means to communicate with them. He made His presence visibly known in a dark cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night. He promised them a home, but since waiting for the fulfillment of that promise turned out to be full of hardship, the Israelites began to think they’d be better off going back into slavery!
It’s often tempting to retreat to our comfortable old sins so that we don’t have to struggle in resisting them. It’s hard to keep trusting in a promise when it feels like so much of the world decries it as nonsense. The world makes its own promises, but they are rather bleak compared to the promises of God. God’s word is true. We are His adopted children. Christ is truly present in the Eucharist. Christ is risen! He will never leave us or forsake us! We will live forever with Him. These are the promises. They do not cease to be true just because life gets hard. God made good on His promise to the Israelites. He’ll keep His promise to us, too.
Prayer: Almighty and merciful God, You keep Your promises. Help us remember that when we struggle. Amen.
