The 5th & final way to vaccinate ourselves from the negative effects of the Whine Flu is this...
5. Don’t strike the rock, speak in faith.
Numbers 20:7-12, "God spoke to Moses: "Take the staff. Assemble the community, you and your brother Aaron. Speak to that rock that's right in front of them and it will give water. You will bring water out of the rock for them; congregation and cattle will both drink." Moses took the staff away from God's presence, as commanded. He and Aaron rounded up the whole congregation in front of the rock. Moses spoke: "Listen, rebels! Do we have to bring water out of this rock for you?" With that Moses raised his arm and slammed his staff against the rock—once, twice. Water poured out. Congregation and cattle drank. God said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you didn't trust me, didn't treat me with holy reverence in front of the People of Israel, you two aren't going to lead this company into the land that I am giving them."
The Israelites were God's chosen people who were miraculously led out of slavery in Egypt to the land that was promised to their forefathers. God wanted them to have a place where He could bless them, a land that had all that they would ever need. The story moved along great until the Israelites failed to learn a very simple lesson along the way. What began as a 2-3 week journey toward the promised land, ended up taking 40 years. The sin that hindered an entire generation was that of complaining. They had a serious case of the whine flu. In the context of this story, the million plus Israelites were busy complaining because they were in the middle of the desert with no water. Though God had miraculously provided food & water just a short time before, they began to complain once again and badger Moses. Moses, their leader, responded in a way that many of us do towards life's circumstances. He responded with fear, anxiety & anger. God told Moses to walk up to a rock & command water to come out, but Moses chose to strike the rock instead. Moses determined to follow his own path instead of obeying God in faith. He allowed his bottled up anxiety, fear & anger to dictate his actions. God wanted to teach Him to speak in faith, but instead he struck the rock in anger. I want to challenge you to make a decision to fill your mind & heart with faith (God's Word)! Make a decision right now that regardless of your circumstance, that you will speak in faith. Don't strike the rock in the midst of your circumstance! Make a decision to speak positive words of life & faith, regardless of the whining around you!
"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." Eph. 4:29