Eating Disorders in Disguise

We were fishing today in one of our favorite places in the whole world.  The weather was beautiful.  The whole setting was so peaceful.  A sanctuary of Your design.  Breathtaking.  It didn’t matter that we were not catching a single fish.  We were fishing for fun.  I saw others there fishing for survival.

An osprey flying nearby, a huge fish caught in its talons.  A lone pelican gliding overhead, surveying the water.  Then suddenly, with a slight change in the angle of his wings, he came to an abrupt halt in mid-air.  Diving into the water like a missile, with pinpoint precision.  Today’s results?  Successful.  Efficient.  Nourishing.

I spoke recently with a new friend.  She was out-of-sorts.  Stressed.  Uncertain.  Insecure.  Self-condemning.  Disheartened. She knew the reason why.  Her time with You, Lord, has lately been sporadic.  She has been ruled by The Tyranny of The Urgent.  Swept up in its flood one day from the moment she had awakened… until, suddenly, the entire day had passed without quality time with You.  Then one day became two… and three… and more days than she could count.

You inspired me to ask her what sounded like a crazy question:  “Do you eat food every day?”  She laughed.  Was I kidding?!  She humored me and answered, “Of course.”  I then asked her, “Why?”  She laughed again.  The answer was obvious.  “My body can’t live without nourishment.”  So then You had me ask the most important question of all:  “And what about your spirit?

She stopped laughing.

“Jesus answered, ‘It is written:  Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'”  (Matthew 4:4)

I didn’t realize the enormity of Your message in that moment until You had me look up the symptoms for malnutrition.  They are profoundly significant… not only physically, but also spiritually.

“Unplanned or unexplained weight loss.  Feeling tired all the time.  Lacking energy.  Taking a long time to heal from infections.  Delayed wound healing.  Irritability.  Poor concentration.  Finding it hard to keep warm.  Persistent diarrhea.  Depression.”  (www.webmd.boots.com)

Malnutrition — the physical kind and the spiritual kind — is not only inconvenient… it can be deadly.  Not unlike Spiritual Bulimia — gorging on the wrong things, then thinking purging will remove their ill effects.  Or Spiritual Anorexia — deliberately withholding healthy nourishment to “feed” an unhealthy self image… even to the point of death.

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name… Give us today our daily bread…”  

Our daily bread.  The daily portion we need of You, Jesus — the one and only Nourishment that really leads to LIFE!

“I am the Bread of Life.  Whoever comes to Me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in Me will never be thirsty.”  (John 6:35)

The osprey and the pelican would not dare neglect their daily sustenance.

Why would we?

Eager for Your feast,

Abba’s Girl

 

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