As we stand on the brink of a New Year, we are drawn inexorably into the unfolding of history. We write our story day by day as we step forward into 2018. We each instinctively hope for a story of thriving, praying that the days of languishing are left behind. But how can we be certain that we will move forward with strength and dignity, laughing at the days to come? How can we position ourselves to flourish?
Well, here’s a critical consideration: How are you going to fuel your endeavors? Because you’re not going anywhere if you don’t get your hands on some nutritious provisions.
Have you ever been achingly hungry? Your belly stabbing with sharp pains, yearning for nourishment. How delicious food tastes when you are truly desperate. “Hunger is the best sauce,” my friend from Trinidad likes to say as he serves up his savory island curry.
Hunger may enhance desire, but starvation is another condition altogether. If a person is chronically hungry, her body will shut down, give up, and cease to cry out in pain. She will slip into lethargy and listlessness. If she is unable to acquire sustenance, she will eventually fall into unconsciousness.
Our physical bodies give us insight into the functioning of our spiritual condition. Have you ever been desperate for the Word of God — your spirit tortured by hunger pains, crying out for heavenly nourishment?
Some have never felt that desperate hunger: “If I miss the voice of God today, I’m going to perish!” Without even noticing, a person may be chronically hungry, wearied by spiritual lethargy, silently starving.
So what do you do if you find yourself wasting away? Simply respond to the invitation from your Jehovah Jireh, your Provider: “He satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.” (Psalm 107:9)
God longs to provide nourishment to your weary spirit. In fact, He invites you to a banquet hall (Song of Solomon 2:4). But what if you stand there, transfixed, wooed by sweet and savory aromas, yet confused: “I wonder who all this glorious food is prepared for? Must be someone very special. Look how splendid it all is.”
If you’re not listening, you may not hear God’s voice speaking sweetly in your ear, “My Dear, this is for you. All that I have is yours. Come feast with me.”
When at last you do perceive the invitation, you muster a burst of strength, and cry out for resurrection life: “Jesus, help! Create in me a hunger and thirst for Your Word. I wish to join the banquet. I long to be satisfied by You alone.”
Jesus draws near to all who call out to Him: “Come, let me revive you and nourish you. I will satisfy your hungry spirit and quench your thirsty soul with delicious morsels. I will never leave you to languish. When you drink of Me and eat of Me, you will be forever satiated.” (Psalm 107:9, Isaiah 55:2; John 6:35; Revelation 22:17)
And so your life becomes one of fellowship with Christ. Your spiritual famine is broken by taking the hand of your Savior – you follow Him to the table, pull up a chair, and begin to eat. Drink. Laugh. Listen. Savor. Relish the strength that courses thorough your once-anguished soul.
As you feast on God’s Word, nourished by His truth and love, you will experience the joy of every-day communion, the simple daily practice of joining Him at the table.
“The LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.” Isaiah 58:11 (ESV)
Mmmmm, now that sounds like flourishing.
