Are You Hungry?

There is no telling how many times I have made a visit to someone’s house and been asked the question, “Are you hungry?” This normally occurs if the visit is made around mealtime. The lady of the house will have prepared something for her husband and children, and she will politely invite my appetite to be quenched. I have found that eating is also a way of bridging the gap of silence between people. You know… those moments of silence we have when one looks at the other and says, “Let’s get something to eat.”

I want to ask you something today. “Are you hungry?” If you are, I know some things you are going to do to satisfy the craving you might have. First, you will plan a meal; next, you will make preparations; then you will come to plight (a pledge; an engagement); and finally, you will be pleasured. Keeping in mind the desire and hunger we ought to have for the Word of God (Matthew 5:6; 1 Peter 2:2), I think we might find some spiritual applications in the following scenario.

Plan Your Spiritual Meal – Have you ever heard, “Are you trying to cool the entire neighborhood?” Whenever my parents would walk into the kitchen and see me staring into the refrigerator, I would hear those exact words. I was planning my teenage snack around what we had to eat. There was no sense in my trying to cook a hamburger without any ground beef in the house. The same is true with fulfilling our hunger for God’s Word. We need first the plans to study; however, our plans will be for naught if we cannot find our Bible or if we do not even own one.

Prepare to Eat – We should next prepare to eat; that’s right, prepare to eat. If you have ever had a snack before a meal, you might have gone to the table with less of an appetite than you would, had you stayed away from the little bites. I must prepare myself to study God’s Word by being focused on my mission. I will not be able to study with thoughts of sin and worldliness on my mind (Isaiah 59:1-2; James 4:7-10).

The Plight – When the dinner bell rings, which way do you run – toward the food or away from the food? If you answer, “It depends on who’s cooking,” you are exactly correct! There was once a lady who loved to cook but was no good at it. She thoughtfully made a widower a pie one time; and after she delivered it to him the man took one bite of it, as desert following his evening meal, and threw it all in the trash. The next Lord’s day, the lady asked how he liked the pie, and the man responded, “Pie like that won’t last long around my house!” If Satan has cooked up a dish of some sort of false doctrine, we need to run the opposite direction of that plate. If God is serving a dish through sermons, Bible study class, or private Bible study, we need to come a’runnin’ (Hebrews 4:12)!

Be Pleasured – There’s nothing like the last bit of chicken-n’-dumplings or a juicy cherry cobbler! Yum! Yum! How much joy do we receive from our studies of God’s Word? Christ, the Word of God (John 1:14) said, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst” (John 6:35). Truly, one who dedicates oneself to the study of God’s Word will be satisfied with their findings.

“And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:40).

Let us all strive to be filled with knowledge and grow in wisdom by studying God’s Word. Plan your next spiritual meal and make the preparations necessary to attend it, make the plight – indulge without prejudice, and enjoy the pleasures that will be afforded you – be filled to overflowing with the love of God and spread His Word. Bon Appetit!