Full

Food has been on my mind a lot lately. On the race, I have realized that food is a big comfort for me. At home, it is so easy for me to hop in my car and drive to get whatever I am craving (which is most likely Chick-fil-A) whenever I am hungry. However, on the race I rarely get to decide what I eat, when I eat, and how much I eat. *pictures at end of blog*

 

I’ve been thinking a lot about fullness. These past couple of weeks, I have prayed and asked Jesus to fill me. Fill me with his love. Fill me with the Holy Spirit. Fill me with peace.

 

Let’s talk about food. When you’re hungry you go find food. Simple as that. When you’re full you aren’t really compelled to get up and go find food. For most people, when you’re full you aren’t thinking about food all too often. But man oh man, when you’re hungry…all you can think about is that 8-piece chicken nugget meal with large fries and an ice cold Coca Cola (guys, I really miss Chick-fil-A).

 

Let’s talk about Jesus. Do you ever remember a time when you longed for connection with Jesus? I can think of lots of times. Sometimes days or weeks go by and I’ll read the Bible and I’ll pray and I’ll go to church, but I don’t feel God’s presence. Then, my works-based brain automatically starts thinking of what I can do or stop doing so Jesus will stop punishing me and finally give me a drink of the living water. But you see it doesn’t work that way. God doesn’t punish and reward us based on some scorecard that he keeps of our mistakes and good deeds. I thought it worked that way for a long time until I read through the book of Job. Long-story-short, you see a righteous man, Job, having everything he loves and owns being taken away from him (please go read Job, highly recommended).

 

So I had to take a step back and ask – okay, so why does Jesus want me to be hungry? Why wouldn’t he just fill me up alllll the time?

 

When we come to a place where we are starving for just a glimpse of God’s heart for us, when we crave that deep connection, when we long for God to blow through the caverns of our souls once more…what do we do? We remember to come to the place where hunger is satisfied and thirst is quenched. We come to the table and beg for a taste of His sweet, sweet presence. 

 

On the race, I rarely get to decide where and when and how long I get to spend with Jesus. And man oh man, I am hungry. I long for a quiet moment with Jesus, for him to just reach down and touch my heart. But I have found that as I hunger, I turn to him again and again. 

 

When we hunger and thirst for righteousness, we are actually called blessed (Matthew 12). So next time you hunger for God – or maybe you just hunger for community or love and satisfaction – just allow your heart to feel that. We were created to hunger for Him. After all, He is the bread of life (John 6:35)! 

 

Some of the racers on my squad are fasting from food. One of my squadmates told us every time our stomach growls, pray to Jesus. Let the hunger be a reminder of our physical and spiritual need for bread. 

 

Love y’all, 

Em

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 Here are some pictures of some of the food I have gotten to try the past couple months!!

 

Waffle + peanut butter + banana (feat. Carson!)

 

Crispy chicken + potato soup

 

Chicken soup stuff + brown unknown stuff + potato soup + bread

 

Pancakes + strawberry jam!!! 

 

Waffle + bananas + whipped cream + chocolate!!!!!!

 

I found a McDonalds in Budapest and almost cried

 

Cabbage rolls in Romania (I hated these…but proud of myself for trying!)

 

 

Homemade bean dip! (I loooved this)

Dehydrated fruit! (I’m a big fan)

 

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