Hungry and Grateful

The full soul passes on the Lord like pumpkin pie after gorging ourselves on turkey and potatoes: “Not now. Maybe later.” The full soul has no apparent need for the Lord Jesus: “I’m OK. I got this.” The full soul is full of itself: “Look at what my hands have done!” The full soul doesn’t just say, “No thanks,” but it loathes the Sweet Savior of the world.

The church in Laodicea was a full church. It may have been full of people with a full bank account. They needed nothing, including Jesus. She probably wasn’t always that way, but her fullness was on the way to destroying her. Fullness is a subtle slide that little by little draws our appetite away from feasting on the Bread of Life and on to the snacks of the world. It is so easy to take one snack, then another, then another and the wedding feast is ruined.

Gratefulness is the great guard rail against fullness. When goods increase, so, too, should our gratefulness, for they are all grace gifts from the Lord Jesus. The hungry soul realizes that nothing that we are given is deserved—all grace! The hungry soul knows that there was nothing in and of ourselves that reconciled us back to God. The righteousness that we have is a gift from Jesus: “Thank you, Jesus! Oh, to know you more!” Hunger and gratefulness go hand in hand.

Whether we have plenty or little, Jesus is what makes us rich. Why settle for the rancid food of the world when Jesus is infinitely sweet? Even the bitter bites of life that we taste from time to time have been redeemed by our Jesus to deep sweetness. The hungrier we are for Him, the sweeter all of life will become. Grant us this hunger, O God, and thank You for Your glorious grace!