I am thinking about Numbers 21:6-9 and the snakes again that bit and killed the thankless people of God. It is such a powerful metaphor for complaining and lack of gratitude— Snakes biting people who grumble and are ungrateful. I think of all the miracles God did in releasing Israel from the oppression of hundreds of years of slavery, back and soul breaking slavery. Children murdered, forced servitude making mud bricks, stripped of education, economy, dignity, and hope.

After all the miracle work in Egypt and the parting of the Red Sea, what was it like for God to see and hear Israel glorifying a life of bondage and cruelty?

I meditate on this for my life. 

Lack of faith in difficult times leads to complaining and grumbling against God. Grumble is an onomatopoeic word that comes from the sound people make when they are discontented. 

What sounds, energy, expressions emanate from my heart, mind, and mouth?

How does fear and hardship change this?

This story reminds me that my words and thoughts have profound consequences which can unleash all kinds of havoc and pain or can draw me closer to love, forgiveness, and mercy. 

An old children’s tale tells of two sisters who meet a magical fairy in the forest disguised as an old woman. One of the sisters was generous and the other unkind. The fairy turned the sisters’ words into physical objects. The kind sister’s words became jewels that fell from her lips every time she spoke, and the cruel sister’s words became poisonous snakes and toads. 

What words are you unleashing into the world?