Here’s how my day went yesterday:
“Good morning, mom. What’s for breakfast?”
“Oatmeal,” I responded.
“Instant-pot or packets?”
“Instant-pot.”
“AHHH Man! I don’t like Instant-pot oatmeal.”
“It’s literally exactly the same as the packets. Only I cook them in the instant pot.”
“Yeah, well I don’t like it.”
Fast-forward to lunch.
“Lunchtime kids!”
6 little people came to the table. “AH Man! Lunch meat! I wanted peanut-butter.”
And at dinner. I was a horrible mom for not letting them drench their food in ranch dressing.
All this grumbling….
No wonder God turned His people over to their sinful desires several times throughout the Bible. (Romans 1:24, Psalm 81:12, Matthew 15:14)
No wonder He let them be taken into captivity throughout the Old Testament.
No wonder He gave the Israelites quail to eat for a month straight after all their grumbling about the mana.
I read these stories and think, `Why would they do that?’ They just witnessed the Greatest Rescue plan of all time and are being fed miraculously daily, yet they want meat. So, God gives them meat. Nothing but meat. They have to clean it, work for it, and then eat it. For a month straight.
Numbers 11: 18-20“ I, the Lord, heard them crying and saying, ‘If only we had meat to eat! We were better off in Egypt!’ So I will give them meat. They won’t eat it just for one or two days, or five, or ten, or twenty days, but for a whole month, until it comes out of their ears and they’re sick of it. This is because they rejected the Lord who is here among them and cried in front of him, asking, ‘Why did we ever leave Egypt?’”
That’ll show them.
Man, I wanted to do that today. Here you go. Peanut butter for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Let’s see how much you want that in a few weeks.
They don’t get it. They’ve always had mom and dad preparing their meals. It’s just the way it is. They have no reason to be thankful when it’s all they know.
Maybe that’s why wandering in the desert or being handed over to captivity was needed for the Israelites.
It’s hard to have a thankful heart when all you know is blessings. You come to just expect to be provided for.
I don’t want my kids to experience going without. But I do want them to be grateful for what they have.
I want to bless my kids. But I don’t want to interact with them when they are acting spoiled and entitled.
I know, I know, kids are kids. We have to teach them. And it starts with showing them their attitude and the true problem. It’s a lack of awareness problem. It’s an entitlement issue.
But ultimately, it’s a heart problem.
I’m never going to stop providing for my kids. No matter how bad they irritate me. Would I like it if they were appreciative? Yes. Would we have a better relationship if they chose to be grateful instead of demanding? You bet!
But they are my children. I love them regardless. I desire to have a good relationship with them. Yet my primary focus is to guide and teach them. Lead them to Jesus. I want their respect, graditiute, and love. But I cannot force them to have a good attitude. Free will.
I’m starting to understand how God must feel when we reject His blessings because we want something else. I’m starting to understand why He doesn’t just give up on us.
Being a parent has changed my perspective on God so much.
Am I a spoiled, entitled child? Or am I a grateful child?
How do you treat God? Do you expect Him to bless your plans and complain when He doesn’t?
Or are you genuinely pleased with the blessings He provides to you? Do you recognize just all the ways He has provided for you today? Do you see His activity in your life?
It all boils down to heart posture.
Do you love and trust God, or complain when things don’t go exactly the way you want?