Unexpected Intimacy
a sermon based on Exodus 17:1-7
by Rev. Randy L. Quinn

This story is not only the Word of God, a story of God's grace and providence; it is also a mirror that reflects the truth of who we are.

We hear ourselves in the complaining and grumbling. We can imagine our own voices raising the concerns. It seems that we LIKE to complain about things. In fact, I remember people in the Navy saying that a sailor wasn't happy unless he had something to complain about. (They used a different word for complain, but the concept is the same.)

We complain about the weather, for instance. "It's too wet." "I'm tired of the gloomy, overcast clouds." "When will the rain stop?" "I can't wait until summer." And then when summer comes, we hear things like "I wish it would rain" and "I can't wait until there's snow in the mountains so I can go skiing!"

We complain about politicians and the economy. We grumble about noise and traffic and growth. We whine about schools and grocery prices. And we also complain about things at church -- everything from the choice of hymns to the low attendance to the lack of respect by children.

We are very much like the people of Israel in this story who complained to Moses. This place in the wilderness is remembered, not as a place where God provided, but where the people complained (Ex 17:7, see also Ps 95:8). And this isn't the only time we read about their grumbling. They whined before this and they murmured afterwards.

But what's sad is that we are just like them. We'll gripe about anything if given a chance. And when we aren't given a chance, we often complain about that, too.

Though there are a couple of differences between our usual gripes and the complaints of the people of Israel in this text.

First, and most notable, is that these people had valid reasons for their concerns. They were in a desert and could not find water. Their lives were being threatened. We, on the other hand, complain as a spoiled people who have all we need and want more.

That isn't to say that we don't ever have serious complaints. The man who has had his house broken into will complain about how violated he feels and voice concerns about the rising crime rate, for instance. Or the woman who spends her last years in pain or loneliness who rails against a God who won't end her suffering and let her die.

And I'm sure you can think of other circumstances in which our complaining may be justified.

The good news is that God doesn't punish us for complaining. God doesn't bring disaster upon the people for failing to trust in God's providence and care. God doesn't enter into an argument with them, either.

God waits. God waits until someone is ready to listen. God waits until Moses asks for guidance.

Then God speaks. Then God provides. Then God's presence is revealed.

God cannot be found in our complaining, though God is there listening. God cannot speak when we are whining, though God is ready to guide us. God cannot meet our needs until we open our eyes and ears and hearts to allow God's grace to be seen and heard and received.

Sometimes we are too noisy with our complaints to hear God's 'still small voice' speaking to us and offering us relief from our distress. Sometimes we are so intensely concerned about our circumstances that we don't recognize God's presence in our midst. And sometimes we are whining about things we have the power and ability to change!

When Moses finally asks God for direction, God says to look at the tools at hand. "You have your staff, the staff you used to part the Red Sea, the staff you used to bring terror to Pharaoh. Use it again."

The former Chief of Chaplains for the Navy, RADM Muchow, used to refer to what he called the "BFO's" of military leadership. He suggested that Chaplains also run into "BFO's" in their ministry.

A "BFO" is a "Blinding Flash of the Obvious." Things that we couldn't see because it was so clear. And I've found him to be quite accurate in describing how we live our lives. I know I amaze myself sometimes when I realize that I've overlooked the obvious.

It should be obvious that we can't hear God when we are talking. But we continue to complain, sometimes aloud, sometimes within, but always our complaining makes us unaware of God's voice speaking to us.

This is a good example of a BFO. We all know it's true, but we don't realize what we've been doing until we suddenly have a Blinding Flash of the Obvious. That's when we open our ears and close our mouths so God can be heard.

When he is finally ready to listen, God says to Moses, "Look at the staff in your hand. Use it." It should have been obvious to him. It was an example of another BFO.

Later, when Moses is at the point of burnout, his father-in-law speaks on behalf of God. Look around you and see what God has already provided. There are leaders among the people, recruit them to help manage the day to day affairs of life (Ex 18:13-23). This was an obvious solution to a critical problem for Moses.

When King Saul faces the Philistine giant Goliath, he can't see the obvious, that God is the source of victory. It doesn't depend upon our size or our might or our expert tactics. It depends upon God. Another BFO. David recognized the obvious and made himself available to God (1 Sam 17:31-38).

When the crowds find themselves a long way from town well past dinner time, the Disciples begin to complain. But Jesus tells them to look at what they have with them. And God uses the five loaves and two fish to feed the multitude (Mt 14:13-21). It was obvious. Use what you have and God will provide.

There is increasing violence in our communities. Our families are suffering from abuse, stress and distress, and the influence of drugs. There is evidence of moral decay, physical disease, and emotional trauma. We all know of the effects of corruption in politics and the strain of a weakening economy. You don't have to sit very long with people in the coffee shop to hear about it all. And we easily join in the discussion as we complain and whine and gripe.

God says to you and me in the midst of our complaining, "look at the tools you have and use them". Quit looking at the circumstances as reasons to complain. Look at the tools God has provided to meet your needs.

How often do we wait until we reach a crisis point before we ask for prayer or begin praying for ourselves? It's a "Blinding Flash of the Obvious" that we should "pray without ceasing" as Paul encourages us (1 Thes 5:17).

It doesn't take "a rocket scientist" to figure it out.

God has also given to us other tools. We have scripture. We have the community of faith, the church. We have each other.

Robert Fulghum often tells the story about a young woman he met in the Hong Kong airport. It was in 1984, and he could tell by looking at the young woman that she was on her way home. She had had a marvelous trip, a long trip, an exhausting trip.

But when he first saw her, she was crying. And when her tears turned to sobs, he became involved in her story. He went to where she was sitting and began to listen. He went to offer some assistance.

He had imagined at first that it was homesickness. Or perhaps a lost love. Maybe even a sense of regret that her trip was coming to an end. All of these could have been true.

By the time he heard her full story, it took his handkerchief and hers -- as well as an entire box of tissues -- to dry up the tears. Her plane was about to leave and she was without money, without friends, and without a way home because she had lost her ticket. She had been sitting there for three hours and was certain that she would spend the rest of her life in this chair in the Hong Kong airport.

He finally helped her dry up the tears and suggested that they eat some lunch. Then he said he'd speak with an airline official to see if there wasn't something that could be done. He offered her some hope.

As she stood up to go, she turned to pick up her belongings and SCREAMED! He thought she'd been shot. What else had she lost, he wondered.

But no . . . it was her ticket. For three hours she had been sitting on it. A hug, a kiss, a smile, a laugh, and a little more tears. Then suddenly she was gone. Off to catch her plane.

Sometimes we're sitting on our own tickets. Our ticket to life. Our ticket through difficulties.

"Look at what you already have," says God, "and use it."

It's so obvious. Yet we miss it. "Look at the staff in your hand, Moses."

Don't forget to pray. Read your Bible. Participate in corporate worship. Practice your spiritual disciplines.

But most importantly, stop whining once in a while and listen. God has an idea of how to get you through whatever life has brought your way.

Amen.