Now when they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for they were bitter. Therefore the name of it was called Marah.

By the Waters of Bitterness

During the last few decades the news has been filled with stories about a pollutant called acid rain. It?s an increasing problem in the northeastern United States and Canada. Acid rain is the result of sulfur and nitrogen oxides being washed from the air by normal rainfall. These pollutants are killing whole forests and destroying fish and other aquatic life in numerous lakes.

The people of Israel encountered a similar situation at an oasis they called Marah, which means "bitter." Something had so polluted the water that it was undrinkable. The people of God were in danger of dying of thirst. But when we need God most, He is always there. Jehovah directed Moses to a tree that miraculously restored the pureness of the water when cast into it (v. 25).

Bitter water also can destroy our spiritual lives. James asks, "Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening?" (James 3:11). The sweet spirit God wants for us cannot exist in a heart polluted by bitterness. Bitterness on the inside will eventually manifest itself on the outside. No matter how carefully we think we have concealed it, bitterness will contaminate all we are, all we say, and all we do. The only solution is to apply the healing balm of God?s Spirit to the bitterness of our lives.

If you are being polluted by bitterness, isn?t it time for God?s freshness? Confess that your bitterness is a sin that is keeping you miserably distant from God. Ask for His forgiveness and begin to enjoy a renewed sweetness.

A bitter spirit will keep you from being a better person.