Cravings: Wednesday in the Word

We’ve all had cravings. When I was pregnant with my first son, I wanted Long John Silvers at least two times a week for the last month. It goes without saying that I gained a lot of weight that pregnancy!

I wanted Taco Johns with my second and chili cheese coneys from Sonic with my third. But pregnancy isn’t the only time I’ve had cravings. Sometimes I just have to have a cold glass of Simply Lemonade Raspberry Lemonade. And yes, the craving is brand specific. Some days, I have to have something sweet or salty. Sometimes I start with one and then want the other.

Even if it isn’t a specific craving, there are times when hunger strikes that you simply can’t ignore the body’s demand for food. Ever wake up in the middle of the night feeling like you haven’t eaten in weeks? You know you need sleep, but you’re just as sure that if you don’t get up and take care of the hunger pangs you’re not going to get any more rest.

I’m not talking about that desire to eat that comes when you’re bored. That’s not really hunger, and we can often fight it without much effort. But when we can feel the hunger, when our bodies cry out for food, we can’t easily ignore it. It throws off our concentration. Productivity takes a nosedive. Energy drains until we can’t push on any more. All we can think about is what we’re going to eat to satisfy our growling bellies.

When did you last feel that kind of hunger for living a holy life? Not believing the idea that a Christian should or shouldn’t do such and such and so we do it. I’m not talking about making a right choice simply because it’s easy or what a good person would choose. I mean when was the last time the desire to know, experience, and show righteousness in your life was so overpowering that you couldn’t give your attention to anything else because you were consumed with filling that need?

When was the last time you wanted to understand righteousness and live a holy life so badly that it poured over into a craving to know God more because He is the source of righteousness and holiness?

I read my Bible. Praying throughout the day is normal for me, as is weekly church attendance. I don’t want to sin. I want to be the person God created me to be. It’s my goal to honor Him and be His ambassador to those around me. To use my talents and gifts to honor Him through serving others. But do I really crave God, His word, and living a holy life so much that I have to seek to satisfy that craving?

Or am I snacking on righteousness through the day only when it’s easy and convenient and calling it good? Am I snacking on other things that have nothing to do with righteousness and letting those dampen my hunger for God?

If we’re going to live the life God designed us to live, we have to want God and the life He designed us to live. It’s time we ask God to give us a craving for Him and for righteousness. It’s time we start listening to the cravings, not only in the bad times when we feel we need Him, but in the good times too. Let’s stop spiritual snacking and sit down to feast on God’s word and His presence in our lives.

As we give in to the craving for God, He will satisfy. But at the same time, we will find ourselves wanting more of Him. Only eternity completes the cycle. But it’s a cycle that moves us from simply craving righteousness to living it every day.

What helps you feast on God’s word and presence in your life each day?