What Are You Hungry For? Pastor Brinda VanLeuven
I’m sitting here in my makeshift “supply” office surrounded by all kinds of Kids Ministry supplies when I realized the items behind me are snacks! How convenient! Really, the snacks are for the kids and volunteers, but every now and then I’m tempted to reach around behind my head and grab a cookie, cracker, or fruit snack. When I do cave in, it’s usually because I haven’t eaten a healthy breakfast or lunch! All I can say is it's a good thing I live close to the church so I can go home and raid my own cupboards!
Have you ever been hungry and didn’t know what you were hungry for? You keep opening the refrigerator and freezer. Veggies don’t do it for you. Do I want fruit? Something crunchy is what I want. Get the chips and dip! No. Do I want the comfort of mac and cheese? Is it cereal? Pizza? Steak and potato? Ice cream? "Ahh," you say, "stop! You are making me hungry!" I know, I’m sorry! I’m making myself hungry just writing this! What will it take to satisfy my hunger? You can be sure however, once you find “that food” and open your mouth to fill up your belly, you won’t be hungry anymore. Well, at least for a little while.
By now, you are saying, “Why all this talk about food? Where are you going with this?” Well, let me tell you a story.
Jesus’ cousin, John, had just been murdered by King Herod. Jesus found out and decided he needed a time of prayer and rest to grieve. However, large crowds of people followed him. Jesus didn’t tell them to go away. The Bible says he had compassion on them and healed them. My assumption here isn’t that it took an hour or two. It must have been an all-day affair because the Word says it was getting late. The disciples who were helping Jesus thought it best to start sending the people away so they could go home and get something to eat. But that was not what Jesus was thinking. “They do not need to go away. You feed them,” Jesus said to his friends. The problem here was there wasn’t enough food to go around. Five loaves of bread and two fish to be exact. But that didn’t matter to Jesus. He had over 5,000 people sit down for a meal. And after praying and asking His Father to bless the food, it was multiplied repeatedly, and all the people were satisfied.
Ahh, satisfied. Many people that day were made well, and all were fed by Jesus. But have you ever wondered if these people knew what they were hungry for? In those days, you couldn’t be too picky about what you ate. And you certainly didn’t have a shelf full of snacks sitting behind you in your office. So, back to the question. Do you think the people knew what they were hungry for? Since Jesus was known to heal people, I’m sure many of them were hungry for healing. I bet some were hoping Jesus was their long-awaited Messiah. Some were curious to find out more about this guy who was loving, kind, and seemed to know just the right thing to say to make people think. And then, there were those who were afraid of who he may be and felt threatened. This incredible true story is found in all four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). You can read each one and come up with the same conclusion. Jesus loved people, had compassion, and desired to meet the physical and spiritual needs of anyone who would seek after him.
Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him! Ps. 34:8
Let’s fast forward to our world today. All around us we see people seeking after something. Maybe it’s a certain person, or a purchase, or a hobby, or going to a certain place. I see it all around me. All you need to do is look on social media for a minute and you’ll be inundated with the next best thing to do or buy to satisfy our deepest longings, only to realize that once we have it, it is not really what we were hungry for afterall. We look for relationships to feed us. We follow the latest and greatest. But it’s not what will fill us. Many follow others, search for things, and live day to day in pain, hoping and wondering what would make their physical bodies feel better or how they can cope with the things and yes, even the people that drive them crazy. The list could be longer. Do you think many do not know what they are hungry for?
What are we craving? I think you know by now where this is going. You see, God designed us to crave. Yes, He was so kind to let us physically enjoy food, fun, and family. All are wonderful things that make living on earth enjoyable. But God also designed us to be hungry spiritually. All of us have it built right in. We all need spiritual nourishment, but some don’t know that is what will fill us. Maybe you know that, but do your loved ones or friends and neighbors know that? Do you see what I see? I see people searching, looking for something to satisfy, but they just don’t know what it is.
Jesus knew what the people needed. He knew they needed healing both physically and spiritually. He did something about it even if it had been a long day and he was grieving the loss of his cousin and friend. He met people even if there wasn’t enough food to go around. Nothing stopped him. Of course, this story is not the only example of our friend Jesus’ immeasurable love for others, but it sure is a good one. It’s not just about the miracle of five loaves and two smelly fish. It’s about much more. It’s a perfect example of who we should be to those around us. Jesus didn’t care about where they were from, what they believed, or the reason they were following Him. He was obedient to His Father. I see many around me who have the hands and feet of Jesus. I must admit, I don’t always have it in me. But I do want to be satisfied in my soul and be filled up so I can be like Jesus and show others that if they just let go of this world and taste and see that the Lord is good, then they too will no longer wonder what they are hungry for.
Let them praise the Lord for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them. For he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. Ps 107:8-9
