“Then they believed His words;
They sang His praise.”
“Then they despised the pleasant land;
They did not believe His word.
But they grumbled in their tents;
They did not listen to the voice of the Lord. “
Psalms 106: 12, 24-25
What a contrast between belief and unbelief in the hearts of God’s people. When we walk in faith, believing in his Word, we sing his praises! Joy fills our hearts and we delight to be in His presence. “Whistle while you work” goes that simple song, but O how profound. His yoke is easy and his burden is light when we trust him and look to him to “act on behalf of the one who waits for him” (Isaiah 64: 4). The hardest of tasks lose their oppressive weight when we, like Paul, work hard, “yet not I but the grace of God with me” (1 Corinthians 15: 10). To work and serve “so as by the strength which God supplies, so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 4:11) results in our singing and delighting in God’s praise and glory.
But O what struggle it is to do even the simplest tasks while groaning in unbelief. Even a pleasant land can seem dry and unbearable. Our songs are replaced by grumbling; our joy, replaced by frustration.
O to be believing and not unbelieving. It makes all the difference in the fruit of our lips and the condition of our hearts. Do not forget, O my soul, that God warns His people to be on guard against unbelief, which will always produce a hard grumbling heart. Therefore be engaged in the battle for a believing heart every day. Flee from sin so that to you will not be taken in by its deceitfulness. Thank you Lord that you will win the battle for belief on behalf of all your people. Therefore believe, O my soul! And trust Him to make your work an occasion for whistling and not for grumbling.
“Save us, O Lord our God,
And gather us from among the nations,
To give thanks to Thy Holy Name,
And glory in Thy praise.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
From everlasting to everlasting.
And let all the people say, “Amen.”
Praise the Lord.”
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