Have you noticed that even after the biggest Thanksgiving feast, when you vow you’ll never eat again, you wake up hungry the next day? Our most satisfying moments—a baby’s birth, a job promotion, an anniversary celebration—are tinged with sadness and the reality that this perfect moment will not last. Will the baby be healthy? Will I perform well at my job? Will my husband or wife die before I do?
In this famished world, our hunger is only partially and temporarily satisfied. That’s why we need daily bread for our stomachs and the Bread of Life for our souls. Feeding on the finished work of Christ is what sustains our faith, fuels our hope, and motivates our love for others. When we think we’re doing just fine without Jesus, our hunger brings us back. Hunger is a gift from God to bring us to His table.
Along the way He is purifying our appetite. We are losing our taste for sin—even our “favorite” sins—and longing to become more like Jesus. By redeeming our hunger now, He is preparing us for a coming day when we will be truly filled.