Isaiah 58:7a — Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, …
Mmmmm, bread. For those who are fasting it, its smell is very enticing. Bake bread in a house and its sweet smell is everywhere. Bread is often thought of as a staple food — a routine food that is part of everybody's diet. It is something everyone needs for life.
We do participate in this as a church. We are a depot for the Edmonton Food Bank and we gather together food items for those who do not have a Food Bank hamper. Usually, the biggest portion to our Bread and Veggie Basket is the breads. We recognize that the hungry need to be fed. We do not try to assess why they are hungry or who is more or less needy; we simply provide food for those who will come.
There is often a greater need though. Physical hunger can be the result of inner hunger. Haven’t you ever done emotional eating? We provide more than bread and groceries during the week. Pastor Merril shares life-thoughts from the Bible. Jesus said He was the Bread that has come down from heaven and that if you ate of His bread you would never be hungry again. It’s this inner hunger that we have the answer for. An inner hunger that, if satisfied by Jesus, can provide the power for them to possibly overcome their physical hunger needs.
The hungry are more than those who access social agencies. I need to recognize those who are hungry in their souls & spirits. The starving can be wearing Armani suits just as much as clothing from Walmart or Goodwill. I need to allow God to show me other’s hearts, for God looks on the heart, but am I willing to feel with His heart for them? Am I willing to feel the broken heart of God for their starvation, even when they walk around unaware of it? Will I judge people who may have wronged me or others because of their inner starvation or will I offer them the Bread of heaven? How will I interact with everyone I meet today — will I offer them the solution for their hunger?
Lord, I thank you that You are the Bread of heaven who has come down to the earth. Thank You for giving me Your Bread to eat. Lord, I confess that I have not always seen people as you see them. I have ignored the hungry. I have even been satisfied to help those who are physically hungry while leaving them to starve in their souls. I have eaten at Your table; I have filled my soul on Your Bread; and yet, I have not shared. Forgive me Lord. Lord, today help me to see the starving and offer them Bread. Let everyone I meet smell the sweet scent of Your Bread and let them be attracted to You so that I might give You to them.
[Also meditate on: Neh. 9:15-17; SS 2:4-5; Is. 55:1-7; Mt. 5:6, 6:31-33; John 6:26-35]
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