Sabbath Devotional :: God-Reliance

Many years ago I was at a conference where one of the presenters spoke about living by what she called “the manna plan.” She referenced the story of the Israelites and the miraculous food from heaven that the Lord provided for them as they wandered in the wilderness for forty years.

This edible substance, known as manna, appeared on the ground every morning. The Israelites were instructed to gather only what they needed for that day. If they gathered more than that to save some for later, it would spoil. The exception to this was the day before the Sabbath, when they were commanded to gather enough for two days. On the Sabbath, the manna they had stored from the previous day did not spoil (see Exodus 16).

I can’t remember who the speaker was, and I don’t remember anything else from that conference, but the concept of “the manna plan” has stayed with me for years.

Living by “the manna plan” means that instead of relying on my own plans, I put my faith in the Lord, trusting that He will provide what I need, one day at a time, even when (especially when) it seems impossible.

The idea of “the manna plan” really resonated with me because I am a person who plans. I want to have a plan. I want to know the plan. I want to execute the plan. I want a backup plan, and a backup plan for the backup plan. Of course, no matter how many plans I make or how great those plans might be, life has continued to show me that things often do not go according to plan, and that the Lord has much better plans than I could ever come up with on my own.

“The manna plan” has been in my thoughts frequently over the past year, as one crisis after another has brought increasing uncertainty and anxiety about the future. I have been continually reminded that all my carefully thought-out plans can crumble in an instant, and that the only way to find security and inner peace is by “relying alone upon the merits of Christ” (Moroni 6:4).

Recently, I was feeling distressed and rather hopeless about a situation I had been agonizing over for many months. One afternoon, after pouring out my heart in prayer, I was suddenly enlightened with the realization that the cause of my distress was not so much the situation in that moment, but my worries about how that situation was going to play out in the future. The answer was clear: I needed to stop worrying about the future and focus on the present moment. The Spirit was telling me: “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself” (Matthew 6:34).

The answer I received on that day contained wisdom I have been able to apply to many other circumstances. I see a pattern that emerges frequently in my life: Whenever I am feeling overwhelmed with anxiety or fear, it is usually because I have stepped out of the present moment and am letting my mind be carried away into thoughts of the future.

In other words, I am trying to gather tomorrow’s manna today.

There is nothing wrong with planning ahead and preparing for the future — we are frequently counseled to do those things. We should strive to be prudent and wise in all we do. Living by “the manna plan” doesn’t mean we live thoughtlessly or recklessly; it means we recognize the source of our daily bread and trust in Him rather than “put[ting] [our] trust in the arm of flesh” — even if that flesh is our own (2 Nephi 4:34).

We hear a lot about the importance of being self-reliant, for good reason. It is important for us to develop personal responsibility and independence. But I have learned that ultimately, it is not my self that I need to rely on. I cannot save myself. It is not my bank account, my food storage, my relationships, my accomplishments, my talents, my wisdom, or my plans that will save me.

Beyond self-reliance, I need to develop God-reliance.

Developing this God-reliance is not an easy thing for me. It involves yielding and surrendering. It means letting go of many things: my plans, my need for control, my distorted beliefs, my fears, my pride. It requires putting my trust in someone else and “hop[ing] for things which are not seen” (Alma 32:21). It means believing in my God even when He feels far away, even when I am struggling to find Him.

And where do I find God? I am learning that I must find Him in this moment. This moment is the only place I can commune with Him. This moment is the only place I can connect with the Spirit. The farther my mind carries me into the past or the future, the more disconnected I feel from God. I must meet Him where I am, right now. I must believe He will come to me where I am, right now. And I must let Him come to me where I am, right now. If I believe the Lord can only reach me when I have achieved a certain level of worthiness or checked an imagined number of boxes off an eternal to-do list, I am relying on myself instead of “relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save” (2 Nephi 31:19).

To develop God-reliance, I begin with believing that God can and will meet me where I am right now — with whatever burdens I am bearing, whatever wounds I am wearing, whatever sins that are staining.

I invite Him — here and now. I make room for Him in this moment. I yield. I surrender. I soften my heart. I loosen my grip. And when I stumble and slip, or when I forget, I simply remember. Repent. Return. Make room for Him again. And again. And again.

As I do this, over and over, day after day, I am fed and sustained. The manna from heaven, the daily bread, is there. The Living Water, the Bread of Life, quenches and nourishes. Not in some far-distant future or post-mortal reward, but here and now, in whatever wilderness I am currently wandering. Because of this, even when “I am encompassed about” and “my heart groaneth because of my sins,” I can join Nephi in saying, “I know in whom I have trusted. My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep” (2 Nephi 4:18-20).

He will lead me and feed me through my wilderness. He will preserve me upon my deep waters. One day at a time. One step at a time. One moment at a time. I can rely on Him.

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I took the above photo on a summer hike in the mountains of Colorado. The photo does not adequately convey the beauty, but scenes like this remind me of these words from Jesus: “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? … For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself” (Matthew 6: 28-34).

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Amy Gold Douglas is the senior director of the faithful root for Mormon Women for Ethical Government.

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