God does something like giving us manna from heaven when he gives us this earth that feeds six thousand people every day.

Wednesday, 7/20/11

Some people say there was nothing miraculous about the manna eaten by the Israelites. I saw a picture story in a National Geographic that backed up the idea that it was something natural.

The article there pictured Bedouins gathering white sticky stuff exuded by ephods feeding off desert shrubs. They called it manna, and they rolled it into balls they baked. It had to be gathered early in the day, because when the temperature rose above 85 degrees Fahrenheit the stuff melted into the sand.

The article also showed the Bedouins gathering birds that plopped in the sand, exhausted after long flights across the Mediterranean.

So, even if the manna and birds in Exodus were not there miraculously, they were there as God’s gifts. The worlds population is six billion, and the experts say that if we just managed things better we could all be getting our three square meals a day.  Feeding us all might not be actually classed as a miracle, but I think it is very good of God to be providing for all of us on this rock floating around in space.