God’s Provisions

The Lord provides. This is one of the central promises of the Christian faith. We know it. We recite it. It’s built into old hymns and contemporary evangelical choruses. The Lord provides.

The Lord provides a rainy spring for the sake of our farmers and the seeds in their fields.

The Lord provides a job when we are on the cusp of graduation.

The Lord provides friends when we move to a new city.

The Lord provides.

The Lord provides for each of our lives in a multitude of ways, in the hard times and the good times. We pray for that provision on a regular basis, asking for jobs or companionship or a home. We ask for guidance and direction and a purpose. We pray for the Lord’s provision, and we hold onto those prayers until we see the ways that the Lord provides.

On Sunday, we celebrated one of the absolute greatest ways that the Lord has provided for us. When He raised Jesus from the dead, God provided redemption, eternal life, and the opportunity to live in relationship with the Triune God of Mercy, Grace, and Love.

Today’s scripture passage from Exodus 15 shows us what it looked like for Moses and the Israelites to respond to a powerful act of God’s provision. After the Red Sea, after the Miracle, and after the powerful provision of the Lord, the Israelites respond in song, praising God for His strength, His majesty, and His holiness. The song ends by proclaiming “The Lord will reign forever and ever.”

The Exodus is one example of God providing on behalf of his people. He brought them up from the land of Egypt and rescued them from slavery.

The Easter story is another example of God providing on behalf of his people. On the third day, Jesus rose from the dead.

These are big stories. They are our stories. They reveal who God is and what He has done for His people. They are the foundation of our faith.

I don’t know your story. I don’t know what Easter Sunday looked like for you. I don’t know if it was hopeful or lonely.  Maybe it was full of travel and too much busyness, or maybe it was restful and revitalizing, or somewhere in between. But today you are living your normal Tuesday life. What does the resurrection mean to you today? What do you need it to mean?

Today, on April 18, two days after Easter, how does that truth resonate in your life? You’ve settled back into work or school or whatever your daily schedule holds after a holiday weekend of celebration with family and friends. What does resurrection mean for you now?

If we believe the promise of God’s provision and if we have seen a powerful sign of that on Easter Sunday, then what are you praying for today? How do you need God’s provision today? When that provision comes, how will you respond?

I don’t know your story or your experience of the provision of God. Maybe it’s a story with a lot of pain, uncertainty, or frustration. Maybe it’s a story full of joy, blessing, and hope. Maybe it’s a story with a bit of both, and a little bit more.

Whatever your story, I would encourage you to wonder at these questions. How do you need God’s provision? When that provision comes, how will you respond? Consider your answers. Talk about them with friends. Let the Resurrection linger in your minds and hearts and conversations.