As I read through the book of Numbers during this turbulent time in our own nation due to Covid-19, I see the severity of the burden that Moses must have felt in his last 40 years as a leader.

Having led the nation of Israel out of Egypt after the miraculous plagues, through the Red Sea, to the mountain where God gave them the Ten Commandments and Law, and then through the wilderness, he is faced with a group of people who continue to complain and rebel.

Moses’ scouts return from the Promised Land, turn the people against Moses, and try to return to Egypt. Then, condemned to the wilderness, they mount a campaign to enter the land against his guidance. Then, the Levites rebel, wishing to have the priestly privileges that Aaron and his sons alone are entrusted with, resulting in the earth opening up to swallow the rebels and their families.

Moses leads despite the criticism and difficulty of the task. He does not abandon them, and we don’t see him lash out at them. They don’t appreciate his leadership or God’s intervention, and yet he sticks his neck out and pleads for God’s mercy upon them several times. It’s no wonder he writes these accounts of the people…by all accounts, any other writer would have written Moses in as a terrible leader.

And what about these times: God was doing amazing things, the people needed only to trust God, trust Moses, and be willing to focus on the blessings they had been given, rather than the hardships their current situation included.

I wonder if our leaders feel this same disdain for their hard work? Unappreciated and untrusted, they feel like every small decision is contested and debated. We should not blindly trust our leaders, and they certainly will make mistakes, but I hope we show respect and courtesy, even in our times of confusion and differing opinions. They have a hard job, and I hope we don’t make it harder, and that they are willing to put their lives on the line for us, just as Moses did.

I wonder how much focusing on negatives has made our current struggle worse than it really is! We are surrounded by blessings, but if we are not careful, we will continue to take them for granted. How amazing is it that we have assistance all around us, offering food, making medical masks, and offering jobs to those who find themselves unemployed during this time?

I wonder how much of this situation we can change more radically if we really pull together as a nation, put our own agenda’s aside for a time, and really work to support those who need it most: truly distancing ourselves, contributing time, money, and work to supply needs, and getting businesses reoriented to prepare buildings and equipment for patients who need it most.

And I wonder, how will our nation respond, if we face a longer crisis than this immediate one ahead of us? The nation of Israel faced 40 years in the wilderness during this time. Their crisis didn’t have a light at the end of a short tunnel they could see. Hope was far off, and they had to settle into a lifestyle in hardship. They had to respond to their leader and work hard to help each other out for the long term. Right now, Americans are operating in a way that expects normal to return soon. I pray that when normal turns out to be a long way off, or another issue keeps us in turbulent times longer, they don’t abandon their goodwill and expressions of faith.

God leads us through the dark times, short and prolonged. I trust Him to do it, and I urge you to do so too!