Sharing another devotional excerpt from Cambria Joy’s book, Milk & Honey.
This one really spoke to me about needing the Lord every moment of every day. When you are crying out to Him to intervene in a situation that is beyond your control. When ultimately you know He is the only One that can change the course. That He is the only One that knows the outcome do you then truly surrender in quiet confidence and trust.
I pray this will encourage you as it did me. Again, I will provide the link so you can purchase Cambria’s very encouraging devotional.
A Taste of Goodness
Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation-if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. -1 Peter 2:2-3
I don’t know about you, but I eat a lot of food. Imagine trying to survive on the occasional cupcake: As good as they are, it goes without saying that it wouldn’t be enough to satisfy.
Our souls simply can’t thrive only having God’s Word from time to time. We find ourselves worn out, weary, and weighed down with burdens, when all along, he invites us to the table to be fortified with his goodness. Most of us don’t even realize we’re undernourished.
For years, I bought into the idea that my body could function on this air. Fasting moved from an occasional practice to a way of life for me. Protein? Carbs? Fat? We didn’t meet until the very end of the day. It’s taken me years to realize my body knows me better that I know myself. Its signals are the brilliant design of the Creator, and they lead me to nourishment when I pay attention.
God made our bodies extremely resilient. They’re so resourceful that when they lack resources, they tap into the backup generator of me, myself, and I. If we don’t eat, our bodies will begin to break down. No glucose for fuel? How about some muscle for a snack? No calcium coming in? Time to break down those pearly whites. It’s impossible to thrive without food; when we try, we enter survival mode. The craziest thing of all is we might not even know when we’re in survival mode! No, it’s not an alternate reality we’re living in. It’s just cortisol and adrenaline making their way through our blood so we don’t stop to pull out the nail we just stepped on as we run away from the bear that’s right behind us. Stress hormones feel good. They make us numb to pain. They give us endurance. That’s their job. But what eventually happens? What goes up must come down.
No one needs to tell you when you’re thirsty because that’s your body’s job. In the same way, Jesus said it’s the Holy Spirit’s job to “convict the world regarding sin…because they do not believe in Me” (John 16:8-9NASB). It would be very strange if I were to go around and tell other people that they need water; the need is as clear as the water itself. Now that I am a nutrition coach, people ask me questions about healthy eating all the time to help guide them into deeper nourishment. (And I do encourage them to drink water!). They have lots of questions, and it’s my joy to be their guide and help. I don’t expect them to know about stress hormones and gluconeogenesis, because that’s my job, not theirs.
Our need for Jesus- who is both our bread and water-is innate because of the Holy Spirit’s work in us. But it is up to us to come to him for daily sustenance, to know him and be nourished by him and his goodness. And there’s the greatest part; Jesus is both our daily bread and our guide; he sustains us every step of the way and directs our every step. It’s like having a coach who guides you in exactly how to eat and then prepares all the food for you. Your job is easy. Just follow his lead and stay hungry
May we follow Jesus every day so he can fill us. Don’t do it out of obligation but because of the invitation to taste the nourishing love he freely gives. The hunger inside will remind us we have a seat at his table. He waits for us each to dine with him. May we say yes to a nourished soul.
Carpe diem (seize the day),
Cilla 💕
Conversations with Cilla 