Verse of the Day - Deuteronomy 8:3

Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. ~ Deuteronomy 8:3 (NLT)

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I wonder what the percentage is of people who are trying to lose weight right now. Maybe 85%? 90%? It seems our world revolves around food, huh?

I like to say that the Baptist way is, "Feed them, and they will come," since it seems that potlucks are synonymous with Baptists churches, or so it used to be, and if you want attendance for whatever, provide food -- doughnuts, at least! After all, at least two major food groups are represented by the beloved doughnut -- three, if you count jelly filling as a fruit. :-) We, in general, love potlucks and buffets, where we can load our plates up with so many different yummy foods, stuffing ourselves until we need an escort to roll us out of the building! And we wonder why obesity runs rampant. No need to wonder -- just look at our plate, look at our frig, look at our cupboards.

Where is our focus, huh? Where are our priorities? Sometimes I feel like the people Paul talked about in Philippians...

Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. ~ Philippians 3:19 (NIV)

We can't drive two blocks down the street in most towns without seeing a McDonald's, a Burger King, a Taco Bell, and a KFC -- and most of them are at a single intersection! Oh, and every one has a drive-thru, for added glutonous convenience. Food is ever before us, and it can become our object of worship, where we just live for the next meal. Gee, I'm so stuffed from lunch -- boy, was that yummy...now, what's for dinner?!?

As much as I love pizza and Taco Bell, that's how much God says I should love His Word. Just as the mention of chocolate mousse pie makes my mouth water, so should talking about God's work make me want to consume it. But the physical realm has such a hold on me -- it takes discipline to give greater weight to the unseen than that which stares me in the face day after day (and smells and tastes sooooo good, too.)

Tasty food can really take our eyes off of God. You might not believe that, but the Israelites obviously needed that lesson, so they got manna from heaven for 40 years. And, boy, did they complain! Their mouths didn't want the same bread day in and day out. They wanted steak and eggs, pasta with cream sauce, and chocolate decadence cake! Where was the focus? On their spirital walk with God, or their physical contentment?

Where is my focus? Where is your focus?

If you don't think the devil uses food as a spiritual battleground, you need to think again. He'll use anything to take us away from seeking God and His Word, and chocolate and pizza and french fries and ice cream can be wonderful tools in the devil's arcenal. So, how about this: The next time you're focusing on food when you're not really even hungry, consider the battleground and read God's Word for as long as it would take to hunt down and eat those munchies -- five minutes, maybe. Ask God to help His Word satisfy you better than a Snickers, or whatever it is you crave.

Let's focus on whetting our spiritual appetites, rather than our physical taste buds. I wonder what the drive-thru guy would say if you drove up to McDonald's and said, Yeah, I'll have two Psalms, a supersized order of Matthew, and two Proverbs for dessert.... ?

Love,
Joelene