Hungry Games - Pastor Sean

But Jesus replied, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about.” John 4:32 NLT

For some reason this weekend I've had a phrase about hunger and games stuck in my mind.  Not sure where I heard it, but it has caused me to ponder.  What type of hunger should we "play" with?

A big meal provides comfort, sustenance, and even a feeling of security.  But, sometimes it is too much of a good thing if there are tasks to be accomplished.

Im sure you've experienced the effect of a full stomach, especially on a spring Sunday afternoon.  Sitting on the couch, golf providing soothing background noise on TV, eye lids are struggling to stay open and suddenly...zzzzzzzz.  Now there is nothing wrong with a good rest, unless it leads to complacency.

A complacent Christian is lazily content with where they are and what they have with God. Life with Jesus has become stale.  A complacent Christian may be prone to sin or embracing the influence of culture and missing the opportunity to build for God.

The lukewarm believers of the church in Laodicea in Revelation 3 were unaware God saw them as “wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked” (Revelation 3:17).  They were not fulfilling their God given purpose.  Regardless of how long a person has been in the Lord, we need to guard against complacency.

 Jesus said in Matthew 5:6, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.”

Hunger and thirst are strong motivators in human life. Just think of the many times we have exaggerated our level of hunger by stating, "I'm starving!"
How much more should they motivate our spiritual lives.

“For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness.” Psalm 107:9.  Jesus said that it is the thirsty person that will come to Him to drink and be filled with “rivers of living water” (John 7:37-38).

The best way to steer clear of complacency is to keep ourselves in a constant state of spiritual hunger.

Smith Wigglesworth said, “Spiritual hunger is when nothing in the world fascinates me as much as being near to God.”

Moses is an example. His request,“Show me Your glory”(Exodus 33:18), reveals a deep hunger for more of God.  Remember that Moses had already been in God’s manifest presence for forty days, and his face was glowing with God’s glory. Yet he asks for more of God’s presence.

Wherever you turn your attention, you will have a desire for more of that same thing in your life. The more you receive, the more of God you want!

Spiritual hunger is an indicator of the Holy Spirit at work in you! If you honestly lack a real hunger for God, ask Him to create the desire for Him within you. I believe that is one prayer to which He will gladly and quickly respond.

Why do we need to avoid complacent attitudes?  The answer may come as we look back in the book of John to an earlier story.

The disciples have gone looking for bread. Jesus engages a Samaritan woman in a saving conversation. The disciples return with food and say, "Rabbi, eat!" He answers, "I have food to eat of which you do not know." They think someone else has beaten them there and slipped him a Reuben sandwich. He says, "My food is to do the will of the One who sent me and to accomplish his work. . . . Look, the fields are ripe for harvest!"

Complacency can lead us to think only of ourselves and miss the impact we can have in the life of others.

We too are to do the will of God, and it happens as God feeds our deepest hunger with the bread of life.