If there is one thing that characterizes the people of Israel on their journey from slavery to the promised land, it's their grumbling. It began at the shores of the Red Sea when they accused Moses of bringing them there to die. No sooner had the songs of celebration died down than "in the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron" (Ex. 16:2).

Instead of being overwhelmingly thankful for their deliverance from slavery and excited about their journey to freedom, and in spite of God's amazing acts of deliverance, the Israelites could never see beyond their needs of the moment.

They had to learn to trust in God even in the inhospitable and barren environment of the wilderness. And this, of course, is one of the main lessons we need to learn in our Christian life: we can trust God to provide for our needs. Whether we're little children afraid of thunder or strangers, or adults afraid of cancer or of losing our jobs, the lesson is the same.

Notice how God answers the people's grumbling with grace and generosity. "I will rain down bread from heaven for you" (16:4). God's answer will far exceed the people's request. They will "see the glory of the Lord" (16:7).

We see that glory in the Lord's lush provision of meat at twilight, as quail fly in and cover the camp; and of bread in the morning, as the manna (the word means "what is it?") appears on the ground.

One aspect of the gift of manna takes up a lot of room in the story, but it's often neglected. While God provides an abundance of quail, the gift of manna is more measured. Each household gathers only as much as they need. If, however, they greedily hoard too much, it turns to maggots.

This measured allotment becomes even more clear on the Sabbath. People are told to gather for six days, but not on the Sabbath. On the sixth day they were to gather double what they needed, and this time it stayed fresh for use on the Sabbath.

In this way the gift of manna displays God's economic principles. The first is that enough is enough; greed and hoarding display a lack of trust in God. The second is the Sabbath principle. We tend not to think of it as being an economic principle, but it is. Sabbath economics teach that everything needs a rest: the land, the animals, and people. Our work cannot save us---we have to trust in God.

We pray, as Jesus taught us, "give us this day our daily bread." That prayer, and that way of life, is anchored in the experience of the Israelites in the desert. Each day they received from God their daily bread, and each day we are to receive what we need from the hand of God.