How A Manna Mindset Transforms Trials
Have you ever cast today’s problems onto tomorrow? For those of us facing prolonged trials, it’s easy to let our thoughts spiral . . .
I can’t do another day like this. I am too weary. It never ends . . . it’s always going to be like this. And I have such a big week ahead, and even bigger things at the end of the month. How will I even do it if I’m feeling like this? I should just quit. I don’t have the strength for tomorrow.
I’m Liv, and I’ve been on a long journey of chronic pain. Turns out I’m a professional wearied-worrier with a real tendency to project my worst days onto every tomorrow in sight. But God has been teaching me that His provision is often lurking around unforeseen corners and His way of training our thoughts is actually quite simple—in concept, that is. The challenge is putting it into practice.
The Manna Mindset
Do you remember God’s provision of fresh daily manna for Israelites?
And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat. This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Gather of it, each one of you, as much as he can eat. You shall each take an omer, according to the number of the persons that each of you has in his tent.’” And the people of Israel did so. They gathered, some more, some less. But when they measured it with an omer, whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat. And Moses said to them, “Let no one leave any of it over till the morning.” But they did not listen to Moses. Some left part of it till the morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them. Morning by morning they gathered it, each as much as he could eat; but when the sun grew hot, it melted. (Exodus 16:14–21 ESV)
If the Israelites took more manna than they needed for the one day ahead of them, it spoiled. God’s provision was daily. They had just what they needed for each day—no more, no less. Simple enough.
The picture God painted through His provision of manna for the Israelites is applicable for us today. It removes the pressure. We don’t need to hoard or scramble for resources. It takes the burdens off our shoulders and places them squarely on our Savior.
This idea of the manna mindset has become a core concept in my management of chronic health problems, and it can transform your trials as well. If we look ahead at a whole lifetime and wonder if it will always be like this, of course we despair. But God gives us the strength we need for each day, right on time.
Grace for Today
“So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.”(Matthew 6:34 NLT)
You aren’t given tomorrow’s grace today. God meets us morning by morning, day by day, and moment by moment with just the strength we need. His promise is and has always been new mercy for each morning (Lam. 3:23). This means we weren’t designed to take on tomorrow today, and when we attempt to do so, we are doing so without God’s daily mercy and grace.
But when tomorrow comes, rest assured you’ll have all you need. That’s the miraculous thing about this mercy. It teaches us to trust God for the provision we cannot yet see. I love this quote from Corrie ten Boom:
Father sat down on the edge of the narrow bed. “Corrie,” he began gently, “when you and I go to Amsterdam—when do I give you your ticket?”
I sniffed a few times, considering this. “Why, just before we get on the train.”
“Exactly. And our wise Father in heaven knows when we’re going to need things, too. Don’t run out ahead of Him, Corrie. When the time comes that some of us will have to die, you will look into your heart and find the strength you need—just in time.”1
Corrie, who was alive during the Holocaust, was worried about having the strength to die a martyr’s death. I’m thankful that’s not the question we’re asking. But I do know that no matter our situation, God gives us the strength we need for each and every day. So, we keep putting one foot in front of the other.
But what happens on the days when we’ve fought with every weapon in our possession and still come up weary? What do we do then?
He Can Handle It
You may have heard it said that God will never give you more than you can handle. I disagree. He will and He does. Look at Paul’s transparency: “For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strengththat we despaired of life itself”(2 Cor. 1:8 ESV).
So yes, God does give us more than we can handle. But here is the promise: God will never give us more than He can handle. Christ says, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5 ESV). In addition, through His strength He always provides a way of escape so that we can endure (1 Cor. 10:13).
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV)
Next time you feel paralyzed and overwhelmed, I encourage you to remember that the Lord has everything under control.
Do the Next Thing
When we are at the end of our rope, we must come to Jesus with childlike faith and dependence, trusting Him in the simplest of ways. When everything is too overwhelming to handle, ask God for strength for whatever thing is in front of you—and take life in bite-size chunks.
A sweet friend of mine from South Africa says it best. She shared this advice with me in light of her father’s intense battle with cancer:
On the really bad days, this is what I would do: I would wake up each morning and focus only on breathing through that day. If one day at a time was even too much, I would take one hour at a time. If one hour at a time seemed too much, I would take five minutes at a time and just do what seemed right for those five minutes. If five minutes was too much, I would decide what to do in the next few seconds or in the very next moment—make a cup of coffee perhaps, get dressed, or walk to the door and open it.
That, Liv, is how I got through the terrible moments when the future scared me more than I can put into words.
Do not look to the future. Do not look to tomorrow. Do not look to the past. Do not look to someone else’s life. Look to Jesus. Grab His hand and take the next step. That could look like reading this blog post, writing a friend who’s also hurting, taking a nap, going for a walk, or doing the dishes.
There have been so many instances in my own life when remaining with my thoughts would end in a train wreck. The absolute best thing I could do in those moments was the next thing. Getting our minds busy and off of ourselves and our circumstances can be extremely helpful.
Take Time to Rest
However, there are still times where a dedicated pause is needed. Rest is an essential theme of the Bible. Even the manna provided for the Israelites was paused on the Sabbath. The idea here is to find freedom in taking life day by day and even moment by moment when needed, planting both of your feet solidly in your own shoes and pressing on with a confidence in God.
This so quickly becomes an unspoken testimony to those around you. People are watching; they are noticing. Even if they don’t realize in full the challenges you may be facing, they still see how your life points either to yourself or to Jesus. People notice others who press on—those who take the next step when they feel like curling up in the fetal position and throwing in the towel. So take things one day at a time. In the arms of Jesus, you are going to be okay.
As we focus on developing a manna mindset, let’s draw our hearts to meditate on the timeless truths of one of my favorite hymns, “Day by Day.” Let these words take root in the soil of your heart.
Day by day, and with each passing moment,
Strength I find to meet my trials here;
Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment,
I’ve no cause for worry or for fear.
He, whose heart is kind beyond all measure,
Gives unto each day what He deems best,
Lovingly its part of pain and pleasure,
Mingling toil with peace and rest.
Every day the Lord Himself is near me,
With a special mercy for each hour;
All my cares He fain would bear and cheer me,
He whose name is Counsellor and Pow’r.
The protection of His child and treasure
Is a charge that on Himself He laid;
“As thy days, thy strength shall be in measure,”
This the pledge to me He made.
Help me then, in every tribulation,
So to trust Thy promises, O Lord,
That I lose not faith’s sweet consolation,
Offered me within Thy holy Word.
Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting,
E’er to take, as from a father’s hand,
One by one, the days, the moments fleeting,
Till I reach the promised land.2
This article is adapted from Olivia’s book, Hold Hope: Encouragement for Christians with Chronic Pain, available through Phylicia Masonheimer’s Every Woman a Theologian ministry or at www.letterstoholdhope.com.
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1 Corrie ten Boom with Elizabeth and John Sherrill, The Hiding Place (Chosen Books, 2006), 44.
2 Karolina W. Sandell-Berg, “Day by Day,” 1865.
