He called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because the children of Israel quarreled, and because they tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us, or not?”
Spending time in nature
For the outside activity today, hike to a waterfall or a lake. Bring a small picnic, if time allows. Along the shore, sit and read Psalms 105 together. The 45 verses recap Abraham to Moses so far. No public reading, bring some paper and writing utensils, write a poem or story about God being the rock in your family/life. If you know how to skip stones across the water’s surface. Jesus is our living water (John 4:10); water flows throughout the entire earth, connecting the world; there is no life without water. If you are blessed to be close to clean running water, you have abundance. In Isaiah, we also learn God is the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion He is a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation (Isaiah 28:16). Later in 1 Corinthians 10, we learn Christ was the stone the water came out of. As you enjoy this moment, think about what it will be like to drink the living water (Ephesians 5:25-27) from the stone that is Messiah one day.
Tip
Water moves through the earth as liquid, vapor, or snowy ice. The same water that rains down on us is the water that fills the deepest oceans. This same water cascades off cliffs and is home to fish.
Do Something Creative
For the creative activity, see if you can make your arm float. Moses, who is a type of Christ for us, and in the second story of Exodus 17, Isreal’s success is reliant upon him raising his hands and offering intercession for God’s people. For a moment, complete the steps below. I’m sure Moses’ arms had to be raised higher than his waist, so it was good that Aaron and Hur were able to help him. The stone he sat on was no doubt a relief as well. Moses had God’s rod in his hand; what can you hold while your hands are raised? Try holding different objects while raising your hands and concentrating on a memory verse, poem, or song you know.
What you will need:
- Stand in a doorway (can be done with a wall as well, you’ll just use one arm)
- Press the backs of your hands against the inside of the door frame for 30 seconds.
- Let your arm(s) down to your side
- Relax and allow your arm(s) to move as they will
- What happened?
Family worship idea
During family worship, remind everyone what happens when we trust in God. Suspend a piece of rope or string. On the free end of the rope, tie a ball or a small heavy object. Take Dominoes and place them in a standing row that will fall if the first one is pushed. If you don’t have dominoes build a house of cards or something that can fall after being hit with the homemade catapult. Place the suspended string and object near the front of the row of Dominoes or Tower of Cards. Grab the ball on the end of the rope; pull it close to the front of the collapsible structure (not close enough to touch it). Release the stringed object; it should swing forward and then come back, but it should not reach your structure. Now try the same experiment but instead of releasing the catapult, push it. Trusting in God can be like simply letting the string go; all we have to do is let go of our own agenda. But when we pushed the suspended object, there is no telling its direction or even its force. It can most likely knock over the dominoes or cards. This is our life when we are trying to make things happen by our own will. The action may be the same as God’s plan, but the force is different, and it can take a new direction. Read Exodus 17; in this story, twice Israel is asked to trust God, first when He opened the rock and again in a fight against Amalek. How is God asking you to trust Him today?
Personal thoughts
Exodus 17 is a lesson on trusting God, this isn’t always easy but the Israelites showed us the consequence of not trusting in the Creator. First, without His life-giving water, we will return to what we once knew. When they wanted water they didn’t start searching out clean water; they complained and asked to go back to slavery. Every day we spend with God He makes progress, every moment in prayer He hears, for His sake, He sees us as His son. He wants to live ve and care for us every moment of every day, the ultimate bulldozer parent, but He lets us make our own choices and mistakes. Rest assured when we are spending time in His Word, the hurt, anger, jealousy, and guilt we felt over our mistakes will be diminished to nothing. The Israelites needed the water to pacify their doubt, we need the word to fight against earthly woes. Also, it is a coward’s nature to attack when you are weak and feeble, but God will have the final word with our enemies. The rock will come up again in Chapter 20, interestingly, God had Moses use the rod to essentially destroy Egypt but for His followers he is giving water and in battle the raised rod caused Israel to proveil.
Hiding His word in your ❤
Now I would not have you ignorant, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; and were all immersed into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and all ate the same spiritual food; and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of a spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Messiah.
1 Corinthians 10:1-4
Sabbath Catalyst 