Appetite doesn’t
always diminish with age. Nor should God hunger.
At ninety-five,
one would think she’d eat like a bird. But not this nursing home resident. She
was one of our church’s shut-ins who had found herself in the hospital. As I
walked in, her daughter-in-law was busy feeding her a liquid diet composed of
apple juice, chicken broth, and Jell-O. None of that sounded appetizing to me,
but I hadn’t been five days without food as she had. “Apple juice,” she called,
and her daughter-in-law put it to her mouth. “Chicken broth.” And the same
response. Then, “Jell-O.” She continued to demand food until she had eaten or
drunk every last bite.
I’ve watched
many older adults’ appetites change. Some who were healthy eaters now ate just
enough to get by, or didn’t, and dehydrated. Others experienced a change of
taste buds. Whereas they had once eaten healthy food, now they wanted sweets.
However, this elderly lady wanted the good stuff. She ate everything—and
anything--they served her at the nursing facility.
As I watched her
demand food to satisfy her hunger, I thought of this verse. Jesus addressed
hunger, but he wasn’t talking about physical hunger. Spiritual hunger was on
his mind. Physical hunger, in the extreme, leads to death, but spiritual hunger
can lead to death or a healthier life.
From the time we
are old enough to distinguish right from wrong, God begins to create a
spiritual hunger in our souls. This hunger explains why all people groups in
history have worshipped something. It might have been the elements of nature or
wooden or stone objects that represented their gods. Yet they worshipped.
What we do to
satisfy this hunger is crucial. Turning to nature or artificial idols won’t
satisfy my appetite. I have never constructed idols from stone or wood, but I
have formed them in the shapes of sports, hobbies, work, and relationships.
That was before I reached the point where I had a hunger for God, to know him
better, to serve him fully. I discovered that no person, thing, or relationship
could properly take his place. The ache in our belly can only be satisfied by
loving God with all our heart, soul, spirit, and mind.
Let God, and God
alone, satisfy your spiritual cravings.
Father, create
in me a hunger that only you can satisfy.
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