“And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the LORD by saying, ‘Is the LORD among us or not?’” (Exodus 17:7)
The Israelites had a hard time trusting God. Apparently they had learned little or nothing from their experience of God. They had seen His work in the miracles He wrought as He delivered them from the Egyptians, the plagues, the parting of the Red Sea, the destruction of the Pharaoh’s army. They had seen it also in the provision of the manna that satisfied their hunger and met all their nutritional needs. Yet they thought the Lord had now abandoned them in the wilderness. They did not think He would or could provide water. Surely they should have known that God knew their needs and would provide for them as He had in the past. The complaining was widespread and so serious that Moses was at a loss as to what to do. At least He knew the Lord would handle the problem.
As imperfect human beings we all tend to complain to God about our lives, our needs, our suffering and pain. Sometimes life gets so difficult that we think God has either forgotten us or that He is angry. Some people even abandon Him all together. The antidote to such feelings is to pray and meditate on the great works the Lord has done as revealed in the Scripture and the great works He has done in our lives. The Lord is ever with His children. He will not forsake those He has redeemed.