Dodger: I can't decide whether I like the glue sticks or the glue bottles more... they both seem alright but... oh hi! We didn't expect to run into you here, but I'm glad we did. Lilly and I we're just trying to decide on school supplies. Maybe you can help. I can't decide whether I should get the glue bottle or the glue stick, and Lilly's not sure whether she should get the fancy scissors:
or the duct tape with bacon on it. 
Lilly: Well, at any rate, as you can see we're getting ready for school and doing some last minute shopping. I have to admit, I'm a little nervous about the school year. Most of my friends from the last year have moved so it will almost be like visiting a new school for me.
Dodger: Oh, don't worry about it Lilly. You'll make plenty of new friends, and besides our friend here and I will be there too! Most importantly, God will. You know His promise where He says He'll never leave us, right?
Lilly: Well, yeah, but I have to admit that sometimes even though I know God's promises are true, it can be hard to believe them, like when I'm at school and I still feel alone. I don't think He's forgotten them, but it's still hard to see them in action.
Dodger: Perhaps...but just because we don't see God's promises doesn't mean they aren't going to happen.
Lilly: I know, but sometimes they're hard to hold onto.
Dodger: That can be true. Thankfully, I was reading a story earlier today which kind of reminded me of God's promises, and His Word in general, actually.
Lilly: Really? Why don't you tell us?
Dodger: Um, okay, but first, do you like quail?
Lilly: Quail? Um, no. They don't taster that great to me.
Dodger: You're probably not the only one. The Israelites probably didn't even want to think about the stuff after a certain day.
Lilly: I'm a little lost.
Dodger: Well, let's start here. We're looking at Numbers 11. Here the Israelites are wandering through the desert. Every day God gives them something to eat, a kind of bread called manna. However, the Israelites have been eating it for a while, and now some are getting tired of it. Instead of recognizing that God is feeding them miraculously in the desert every day, they start complaining about His blessing. Here's where we pick up: "Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: “Who will give us meat to eat? We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!” Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its color like the color of bdellium. The people went about and gathered it, ground it on millstones or beat it in the mortar, cooked it in pans, and made cakes of it; and its taste was like the taste of pastry prepared with oil. And when the dew fell on the camp in the night, the manna fell on it. Then Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, everyone at the door of his tent; and the anger of the Lord was greatly aroused; Moses also was displeased. So Moses said to the Lord, “Why have You afflicted Your servant? And why have I not found favor in Your sight, that You have laid the burden of all these people on me? Did I conceive all these people? Did I beget them, that You should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a guardian carries a nursing child,’ to the land which You swore to their fathers? Where am I to get meat to give to all these people? For they weep all over me, saying, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ I am not able to bear all these people alone, because the burden is too heavy for me. If You treat me like this, please kill me here and now—if I have found favor in Your sight—and do not let me see my wretchedness!” (Numbers 11:4-15 NKJV)
Lilly: Yeesh. Sounds like everyone was having a bad day. What was Moses so upset about? Even if the people were being whiny, that was no reason for Him to get so upset that He wanted God to kill him!
Dodger: He may have been tired. The important thing, though, is that He forgot for a brief moment how big God is. Instead of asking God for help, he panicked, and forgot what God could do, so to speak. He let his problem overshadow his view of God.
Lilly: So what did God do? Obviously He wasn't happy either.
Dodger: Well, let's see. "So the Lord said to Moses: “Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tabernacle of meeting, that they may stand there with you. Then I will come down and talk with you there. I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone. (Numbers 11:16-18 NKJV)
Lilly: So God decided to ease up the burden on Moses?
Dodger: Yep. Just when Moses thought he couldn't take it any longer God stepped in and helped Him. When we get to the end of ourselves it's good to look towards God. One of the great things about God is His compassion for us, even when we're angry. He never wants to harm us. He's got our best interests in mind all the time.
Lilly: But what about the Israelites and the meat?
Dodger: Right. I'll continue from where God was speaking to Moses. "Then you shall say to the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat; for you have wept in the hearing of the Lord, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? For it was well with us in Egypt.” Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. You shall eat, not one day, nor two days, nor five days, nor ten days, nor twenty days, but for a whole month, until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have despised the Lord who is among you, and have wept before Him, saying, “Why did we ever come up out of Egypt?”’”" (Numbers 11:18-20 NKJV)
Lilly: That doesn't sound very pleasant. God was going to bombard them with meat?
Dodger: Yep. But when He told the Israelites they would have meat coming out of their nose He wasn't trying to be funny or mean. He was simply disciplining them for failing to trust Him and be grateful to Him once again. If the Israelites didn't learn to trust God and follow Him in the desert, God wouldn't be able to bless them like He wanted to.
Lilly: Okay. So after that what happened?
Dodger: Here we are. Moses is talking to God after He just finished speaking. "And Moses said, “The people whom I am among are six hundred thousand men on foot; yet You have said, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat for a whole month.’ Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to provide enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to provide enough for them?” And the Lord said to Moses, “Has the Lord’s arm been shortened? Now you shall see whether what I say will happen to you or not.”" (Numbers 11:21-23 NKJV)
Moses may have doubted that God could even do what He said. He certainly doubted that He would. God responded by asking rhetorically whether His arms had been shortened, saying that He could do what He said He would. And sure enough, it happened.
"Now a wind went out from the Lord, and it brought quail from the sea and left them fluttering near the camp, about a day’s journey on this side and about a day’s journey on the other side, all around the camp, and about two cubits above the surface of the ground. And the people stayed up all that day, all night, and all the next day, and gathered the quail (he who gathered least gathered ten homers); and they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. But while the meat was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, the wrath of the Lord was aroused against the people, and the Lord struck the people with a very great plague. So he called the name of that place Kibroth Hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had yielded to craving. (Numbers 11:31-34 NKJV)
Incidentally, just to give you an idea of how much quail there was-
Dodger: It's not an exact measurement or anything, but trust me, there was a lot of quail.
Lilly: That story's kind of sad...people died, and there was more poultry involved than anyone could ever wan.
Dodger: It is sad. However, one really neat takeaway from all this is that when God says something, He means that it will happen. There's nothing which God cannot accomplish, nothing which shortens His arm. This is a sad story to be sure, but it reminds us of the fact that God brings all His words to pass. It also reminds us that even in the midst of our fears and panic attacks He is still in control, and He's looking out for us.
Lilly: In other words, if He can put two cubits of quail in the middle of the desert, He'll keep His promises to me.
Dodger: Right. And among His promises are:
Salvation for those who believe in Jesus- John 3:16-18
Peace to guard our hearts and minds- Phillipians 4:6-7
The fact that He won't be angry with us long, and will give us joy- Psalm 30:5
There are plenty more, but these are just a few.
You see, too often we forget God's promises or don't know them at all. I know I could stand to know them better. I think we all could, actually. And when we know them, and that He will never drop or go back on any of them, we can have gladness, and be happy that God is faithful to do everything He says. That's why I know you'll be okay this year Lilly.
Lilly: Wow. Thanks, Dodger.
Dodger: Oh don't thank me, thank God!
Lilly: Good idea. Thank you God, for fulfilling all your promises, for loving me and for not forgetting me, ever. You never cease to amaze us with your greatness, God. In Jesus name, Amen.
Dodger: Now I really have to decide whether to get the glue stick or the bottle. Oh, you have to head home? Well it was nice seeing you here. Remember, Jesus loves you, and that's not about to change!
Lilly: See you in class!
(NKJV Means New King James Version)
The Pictures of the scissors, duct tape, and the background for Dodger and Lilly's supplies store came from the following URL's respectively. Please note none of these pages are owned or operated by I-BulldogStudios.
http://www.global-manufacturer.com/upload/product/00265/1065.jpg
http://duckbrand.com/images/product_itemse259d3827d795eb1a8efb38fd74cfc42_resized.jpg
http://www.survivingateacherssalary.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/2012-07-16-15.06.58.jpg
