Exodus 15:22-15:27 -- The First Grumbling in the Wilderness

Exodus 15:22 Then Moses led Israel on from the Red Sea, and they went out to the Wilderness of Shur. They journeyed for three days in the wilderness without finding water. 23 They came to Marah, but they could not drink the water at Marah because it was bitter—that is why it was named Marah. 24 The people grumbled to Moses, “What are we going to drink?” 25 So he cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree. When he threw it into the water, the water became drinkable
He made a statute and ordinance for them at Marah and He tested them there. 26 He said, “If you will carefully obey the Lord your God, do what is right in His eyes, pay attention to His commands, and keep all His statutes, I will not inflict any illnesses on you that I inflicted on the Egyptians. For I am Yahweh who heals you.”
27 Then they came to Elim, where there were 12 springs of water and 70 date palms, and they camped there by the waters.

Their journey just begun and they are already grumbling about the things they need.  They grumbled to Moses  about the water being bitter and undrinkable.  Moses appealed to God and God told him what to do to make the water drinkable.   God promises that if the people obey his laws and statutes, he would not inflict them with the diseases that were put on the Egyptians.  He then led the Israelites to a place with many springs and date trees.  They had food and water while they were there.

God provided for the needs of the Israelites.  He told Moses how to make the water at Marah drinkable and then lead them to where they had plenty of water.  The Lord will always provide what we need.  Not what we think we need, but what we actually need.

Matthew 6:25 “This is why I tell you: Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they? 27 Can any of you add a single cubit to his height by worrying? 28 And why do you worry about clothes? Learn how the wildflowers of the field grow: they don’t labor or spin thread. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these! 30 If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t He do much more for you—you of little faith? 31 So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ 32 For the idolaters eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. 34 Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

God tells us not to worry about our needs.  He will provide them for us.  Just as God provided for His people in their wandering, he too will provide for us.  The Israelites grumbled and worried about the water they had to drink.  Why would God lead them out of oppression just for them to die in the dessert?  They asked that question many times in the 40 years they wandered.  Did they ever stop to think that God would provide all they needed to make it to the promised land?  If he had not, then God's promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob would not have been fulfilled, then our God would not be worthy to worship because if he cannot keep a promise, then we cannot trust that anything he says would be true.  Since our Lord did keep his promise to Israel, we know he will keep these promises for us as well.