Spiritual Eating Disorders Series (Part 3)
Of all the unhealthy eating cycles, this one hits closest to home for me, both in the natural and as an analogy. I am someone who can easily lose track of the amount of food I eat. I enjoy food. It perks me up when I'm sleepy, feels good when I'm grumpy or bored. Food is meant to do these things. The problem occurs when I choose foods that are devoid of nutritional value and cause me to feel even emptier than if I hadn't eaten. This leads to bingeing even more on worthless junk.
Certain foods create more hunger. They are addictive and cause you to want more than you need. You reach for a snack and instead of satisfying you, you feel even more starving than ever. So how does this apply spiritually? Let's look at what we feed ourselves emotionally and spiritually. Where do we turn when we are sad, disappointed or bored? Do we flip through social media? Do we open the fridge? Do we escape into worlds of fantasy? Those escapes are effective in the moment, but devoid of substance. Like sugar, they give us a quick high, but then leave us more bereft than before. The help they offer is superficial and short-lived.
John 4:13-14
13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
The Bible says that what the world offers does not satisfy. Only God can. So if we are spiritually hungry, we need to reach for His sustenance, not the artificial substitutes that are easy to come by. When we feast on His word and His presence, we are filled to overflowing. We are satisfied in ways that no other substance can offer.
Lord, I confess that when I am low, it's so easy to reach for the junk. I turn to distraction, I turn to empty indulgences and sin, instead of reaching for You. Forgive me for the idolatry I practice when I stuff my face with what the world has to offer. Help me to place You on the throne of my heart anew. Fill me, Holy Spirit, as only You can. In Jesus' name. Amen.
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