Cravings: Wednesday in the Word

Cravings. Most people associate cravings with pregnancy. I admit, I had my share of quirky food wants when I was expecting my three boys. While they may not have been odd, like pickles and ice cream, they were still over the top. With my oldest I wanted Long John Silvers. All. The. Time. Seriously, we had Long John Silvers at least once a week for about a month. For a place we can typically eat at once or twice a year and call it good, that’s a serious craving.

Free from the demands of pregnancy hormones, I don’t usually experience cravings. It’s a frustration for my husband who often wants my input on where we should eat. I don’t really care. Anywhere we go, I can find something to eat. I don’t feel that strongly about the food I’m going to eat.

There is one exception. Tell me I can’t have something.

I’ve been dieting for a few months now. Several doctors have hammered home the point that I need to lose a lot of weight to reduce later health risks. Besides, I want to be able to enjoy my time with my grandkids. Playing with them is much easier when it doesn’t hurt to get up off the floor.

Knowing I need to lose the weight, I’ve committed myself to dieting. Nothing crazy. Mostly making better choices and watching portions. It’s very slow going. And painful. Not in the physical sense, but in the mental and emotional sense. The knowledge that I can’t have this or that (well, I could but it would reduce me to nothing but veggies for the rest of the day) has spurred on cravings like I’ve never experienced before.

Suddenly, my favorite potato chips (Pringles) and my favorite desserts (decadent chocolate anything) call to me from the shelf in the grocery store. Because I shouldn’t have them, I want them with a ferocity I never would have imagined possible. Once the cravings hits, I can’t stop thinking about them. My mouth practically waters in anticipation of what will come when I give in to the siren call of the food I should not be eating.

I try substitutions. They inevitably fail. I want the real deal, and my taste buds know the difference. Resistance is futile. More often than I should, I cave to the call of my favorite junk foods. Like the results of a box of Little Debbie snack cakes has on my hips, guilt settles over me for the long haul.

But there are cravings that come without guilt. I was reminded of that while reading John 4 this morning. After the disciples come back from the town, they offer Jesus food. He says he’s had food they don’t know about. Their confusion is obvious.

Jesus answers, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.” (vs. 34)

It’s noon. Jesus and His crew have spent the day walking. While Jesus takes a break at the well, the disciples go into town to pick up lunch. Not only is it the appointed time to eat, they’ve worked up an appetite with physical exercise. It’s not like the disciples are trying to force an extra meal into the day. They know Jesus has to be hungry. They’re hungry.

But Jesus waves off the food. He doesn’t need it. His cravings have already been filled because His desires are centered on doing the will of God and finishing the work He was meant to do. That’s where Jesus finds satisfaction and strength. His well-being doesn’t come from making sure His physical plate is properly divided into the correct fractions of proteins, veggies, and grains. It comes from doing what God is calling Him to do.

We’re told throughout the New Testament to have the same mindset as Jesus, to live more and more like Him each day. God’s plan is for us to look so much like Jesus in who we are and how we are that when others look at us, they see Him. This means adopting the attitudes and ways of Jesus, allowing the Holy Spirit to transform our minds. What Jesus craves should be what we crave, and that’s to do the will of God and finish His work.

When I consider my physical cravings and compare them to my spiritual ones, I begin to see how far from having the mind of Christ I am. I want to do God’s will and the work He has for me. But do I crave it? Does the will of God consume my thoughts until nothing else will satisfy?

The Psalmist said he craved God the way a deer craves water. It’s in my relationship with God that I’ll find satisfaction, strength, and spiritual well-being. I know this. But do I crave God the way Jesus did? Is doing God’s will what nourishes me each day?

I’ve got to be honest in my assessment. It’s easy to say I crave God, but do the actions of my life confirm it? Do the ways I spend my days show an aching for God that moves me to action more than anything else in my life? Do I allow other things to be poor substitutes for God and accept their fleeting satisfaction that will leave me feeling empty later on?

Lord, help me crave You. Let me desire Your will in my life, my relationship with You, above all else. Fill my entire being with the desire to be in Your presence and doing Your work. Let me find lasting satisfaction only in You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.