Exodus 17

Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, "Give us water to drink." And Moses said to them, "Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?"

Exodus 17:2

The people of Israel turned to Moses as their god and their leader, and Moses in verse four cries to the Lord for help in prayer. The people cannot seem to see God working through Moses, whereas Moses understands his role as a leader for God. He knows that he is not the one to quarrel with and that he is not the one that can bring the people what they need, but that the Lord is the one that can bring them what they need through him. In their complaining, the people don't realize that they are quarreling with the God who provides for them, rather than turning and crying out to Him in the same way that Moses does.

Moses, in his place of leadership and wisdom granted by God, knows to turn and cry to God and ask Him what to do, and God faithfully provides water. This boils down to a few things. The first is the question asked in verse seven, "Is the Lord among us or not?" God is always among us, but the question is whether we are able to see Him and turn to Him rather than quarrel with the flesh. The other thing is are we willing to see God working through people, or do we idolize the people who God works through? The people obviously know that Moses has some sort of leadership and power, but it is not clear that they believe the power comes from the Lord, because they turn to Moses rather than to God. In the same way, when we go through something and feel a need, where do we turn? When we listen to pastors speak, do we see them, or do we value the way that God is working through them?

I am moved by the way that God is always at work, and by the way that where we turn and who we cry to shows a lot about our relationship to God. I feel like I did not always turn in the right direction, and that I am very much like the people, where I quarrel with the flesh and I test God. The reality is that I need to ask myself the question of is the Lord among us or not, and the answer is that He always is. His presence is always here. My flesh can get in the way of seeing Him.