And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice…And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them (Numbers 20:11-12).

It pays to always do things God’s way. The scripture above tells us of Moses’ action when the children of
Israel were thirsty for water in the wilderness. They cried to Moses, and when Moses spoke to the Lord about it, He told Moses, “Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes…” (Numbers 20:8).

The instruction was for Moses to speak to the rock to give them water; he wasn’t to strike it. Interestingly, much earlier in their journey, when they were thirsty and cried to
God for water, God said to the same Moses, “…smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel” (Exodus 17:6). However, this time, He said, “Talk to the rock.” This was a different instruction.

Sadly, Moses did it his own way, striking the rock, instead of talking to it as expressly instructed, because he was offended at the people. God was trying to teach Moses that there was a higher way; a better way. Moses was used to performing miracles with the rod; he could do anything with his rod, but God wanted to change things. He was trying to tell Moses, “You really don’t need this rod; you can rule by words; just talk to the rock and it’ll get you water.” Moses was
too angry to think with God.

Refuse to be ruled by anger or negative emotions. Some people are so self-conscious and earthly-ruled that all they think about is how to do things their own way. They’re so carried away in the flesh that God’s voice is faint to them. All they hear is the voice of the flesh, but to be carnally minded is death (Romans 8:6). Don’t be that way. Go the Word-way
all the time; follow the Spirit.

Even when His instructions don’t seem “convenient,” do His will, because with Him, you can’t miss your way in life. Don’t do what’s convenient for you; do what He wants, and your life will be full of peace and glory.

Further Study:

Proverbs 16:25
Luke 22:41-42
Romans 8:14