Have YOU Ever Asked..."Man Hu???"

[Timl1980]

I have...truth be told.... done it over and over again in the past.

 

I love Jehovah and all that he provides...and yet...I am most definitely guilty of looking around at my fellow brothers and sisters and asking that question repeatedly. At first...it was in a positive light...my eyes wide and my mind struggling to deal with all of the information I was taking in. 

 

But...over time...I have indeed found myself looking at some of those same brothers and sisters and mouthing, (even if silently), “man huʼ?” ...or...WHAT IS IT??

 

What am I talking about?

 

Manna, my friends...simply Manna.

 

I love Pizza...just the thought of an authentic Chicago deep dish Supreme pizza sets my taste buds vibrating...even now I can smell the onions and the garlic and the fresh sausage and pepperoni...my mouth is watering with just the thought of it.

 

And yet...if forced to eat that same delicious deep-dish pizza...every single day...for 40 years...even I would come to loathe the very scent of it...probably after just a few months...I would probably be so sick of it...I would beg to eat anything else...no matter how tasteless or boring.

 

For 40 years, Jehovah made the Israelites and a vast mixed company with them eat the same thing...day after day...week after week...month after month...and year after endless year. 

 

At first, they were no doubt amazed and delighted by this miraculous provision from Jehovah...as is indicated by the meaning of the word Manna..."Man Hu??"...or...WHAT IS IT???

 

But...after year after year of this same meal...the tone of that question shifted...it became contemptuous...a vile curse to be spit out by ungrateful people who were sick and tired of this contemptible substance.

 

To them, it didn't matter if it was provided through angels...or by Jehovah himself...they just wanted SOMETHING ELSE TO EAT!!!

 

It didn't matter that they were being fed...it didn't matter that no matter where they went...no matter what terrain they passed through...the Manna was still there...no... they WANTED SOMETHING ELSE!!

 

It didn't even matter that...out of their own mouths...they freely admitted they would have starved to death if Jehovah HADN'T provided the Manna, (Exodus 16:3,4). Their contempt of Jehovah's miraculous provisions had become so blatant that they openly spoke out against Jehovah's arrangement, causing Jehovah to send poisonous serpents among them.

 

So how have I been guilty of something similar?

 

Prayer...study...meditation...meetings...ministry...association.

 

These are the basics of our faith...and, at times...I have thought one or more of these subjects "bland".

 

Not that I quit doing them...but at every meeting...every Watchtower Study...every single Assembly or Convention talk...it all boils down to one or more of these subjects being addressed. Either I am not doing it enough...or I am lacking in one or more aspects of them.

 

I am looking for lightning bolts...awaiting the same feel of excitement I had when I discovered... (without a shred of a doubt) ...that this was THE truth...and yet...here I am... fed a steady diet of deep-dish pizza when my heart is calling out for Prime Rib and a spicy rack of Baby Back Ribs.

 

I found a Watchtower article many years ago that has helped me get a much better appreciation of this subject, and I will include the link...in case anyone else has ever, (even if only secretly), felt the same. Here are three paragraphs that helped me set my mind straight...and get ahold of my treacherous heart and guide it back into alignment with Jehovah's way of thinking:

 

"Imperfect humans can lose their appreciation for things that become a routine part of life—even if these things are a reflection of Jehovah’s loving concern. For example, the supernatural provision of manna both astonished and gratified the Israelites at the start, but in time many of them complained. “Our soul has come to abhor the contemptible bread,” they moaned disrespectfully—an indication that they were beginning to ‘draw away from the living God.’ (Numbers 11:6; 21:5; Hebrews 3:12) Their example, therefore, serves as “a warning to us upon whom the ends of the systems of things have arrived.”—1 Corinthians 10:11.

 

How can we take to heart this warning example? One way is by never allowing Bible teachings or the provisions we receive through the faithful and discreet slave class to become ordinary, or commonplace. (Matthew 24:45) Once we start to take Jehovah’s gifts for granted or become bored with them, our relationship with him begins to cool off.

 

For good reason, Jehovah does not flood us with a constant downpour of exciting new things. Rather, he sheds increased light on his Word gradually, progressively. (Proverbs 4:18) This allows his people to assimilate and put into practice the things they learn. Jesus followed his Father’s example when teaching his early disciples. He explained God’s Word to them “as far as they were able to listen,” or “understand,” as some translations put it.—Mark 4:33; compare John 16:12."

 

Once I started to really meditate on this subject...I started to appreciate why Jehovah has things set up the way they are. Our minds, imperfect and unable to retain all that they once did...could not hold, (much less truly understand or appreciate), all of the wonderful awe-inspiring things that he COULD tell us. 

 

He HAS to keep it basic with us, (for now), because we have a lifesaving work to do. The repetition we go through...each and every single repetition has a distinct and valuable purpose. We are being trained for survival...not on our own merits, but by fully trusting in Jehovah.  

 

Just as the Israelites could prepare the Manna in different ways...so too the Slave repackages the same basic elements over and over again...just with different hints of spices and varying degrees of flavors. It's basic, but its life saving...and above all...it's food. The world has no such food...period......and they are starving. They are wasting away in front of our eyes...and most simply will not see our food for what it actually is.

 

I just wanted to write this in case anyone has ever felt the same as I once did. Please know that you are not alone...but also please understand that while Jehovah's meal may seem repetitive...there is no other food that can bring us through Armageddon and into the New System. And I would rather eat deep dish pizza every day for life...than starve and die of hunger just because of my attitude towards three little words... "WHAT IS IT??"