"Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank." (Numbers 20:11)

Christian camp was one of the things which got me through my teen years. It was at camp that I felt closest to God. Outside of camp, I knew only a few Christians, school was difficult because of teasing, and at home I missed my father’s presence. At camp I felt like I fit, I was in a supportive environment, and there were great Bible studies. God felt so near to me. Time at camp was my "fix," my mountain-top experience to get me through until the next camp.

For the first several times at camp, it always worked the same way. By the time camp ended, I had all sorts of warm feelings inside. I was like a camel drinking before a long trip through the desert. My spiritual humps were filled for the long trip until the next camp.

I can remember the camp when I didn’t get the same feeling. I didn’t have the "warm-fuzzies" which normally came after camp. It really bothered me because God didn’t seem as close. The camp activities didn’t change, so what happened?

It was only after the passage of time and reflection that I realized God was working differently within me than he had in the past. I assumed that God would always do things the same way, and when he didn’t I was disappointed. I needed to trust him to work within me in a new way, rather than always to look for the old ways.

As I look back on my experience, I realize that I did the same thing as Moses when he struck the rock that day. Thankfully God didn’t deal with me the same way he dealt with Moses. "But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them." (Numbers 20:12)

"Whoa, Troy. I don’t get it – Wasn’t Moses supposed to strike the rock?" We need to be careful not to confuse today’s passage with another passage. In Exodus 17:6, God commanded Moses to strike the rock. This happened just after they left Egypt. In our passage, however, God commanded Moses simply to speak. "Take the staff,... Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water." (Numbers 20:8)

Because God had done it that way before, Moses assumed he would do it that way again, and so he struck the rock. Interestingly, it still worked, but God was not pleased. In fact, for his lack of faith, Moses would not enter the promised land. Moses blew it because he assumed God always works the same way.

This was my mistake at camp. I assumed God would always give me "warm-fuzzies." I didn’t realize that God could do it differently. This reminds me of a little book by JB Philips, called, "Your God is Too Small." My God was too small. Moses’ God was too small.

This is an easy trap to fall into because our experiences with God are so powerful. We want a repeat performance because it feels so good. The problem is not wishing it might happen again, however. The problem is taking that experience and making it the benchmark of God’s activity.

"God is only close when I feel warm-fuzzies."

"God only works this way."

"God only blesses one kind of music."

"Revival means people come forward in a tent meeting."

"Church isn’t church unless we ___________."

"Church isn’t church if we _____________."

We tend to turn our past experiences into magical formulas for God’s blessing. But if this were the case, our faith would only be in the formula, and not in God himself. God wants to take us past the formula to a deeper and fuller trust.

This means we have to trust him when he works in new ways. If we don’t, we’ll find ourselves in the desert instead of the promised land. If we think God only works in the old ways and means, we’ll be left behind as the others go into a land of blessing.

Hope this helps,

Be On Fire

Troy