Give me a buffet any day. A continual feast of food. Could be at a high-end restaurant for Easter brunch, a simple one at a Chinese restaurant, or tables loaded with homecooked goodies at a church potluck supper. Love them all.
It's in Europe that we've relished breakfasts at hotels we've stayed at. One my wife and I will never forget was on our 25th wedding anniversary, enjoying brunch at the Ritz Carlton Cannes Hotel in France, directly facing the Mediterranean Sea. What a magnificent spread. Culinary elegance at its best. Thankfully, they didn't weigh us before and after to compute our bill. But a feast that never ended was there for our enjoyment. And did we ever!
Trying to move off of food for a moment, which seems like a chore, let's look at some wise words found in Proverbs 15:15--'All the days of the afflicted are evil, but the cheerful of heart has a continual feast.' Don't you love such wisdom? It should come as no surprise. For it comes from the Bible, God's own Word.
Sure there are lots of daily troubles. Worries plague us. Pandemics past, present, and when in the future? We know they happen. Do we ever. Now we're on the alert for more to come. When? Who knows? We don't have a clue, but trauma puts us on edge. Such fear afflicts us even when times are good. Worry robs us even when no thief is around. Bad days come as we allow anxiety to grab us by the throat not letting go.
What about that second part of verse 15? About how to live and how to look at life. As in trusting God. Staying close to our Lord. Putting faith into action--'...but the cheerful of heart has a continual feast.' Joy and gladness continually feed us, making tough times that much less.
What's ironic about nourishing your relationship with Jesus is that the closer you get to Him, the more you want Him. Those buffets we enjoyed took a long time to recover from, to get back our appetite. Thoughts of food were far from our minds, sometimes for a day or two. Or at least until an evening snack!
But with Jesus, the more you take, the more He gives. The more you open your life to Him, the more you discover His wonder and love. Never enough. Always more to enjoy of our Lord and Saviour. Glee multiplies. Happiness radiates with kindness. He cheers our hearts and minds as promised in Proverbs. Cloudy, rainy days see some clearing. Smiles finally show up. Why not? After all, He is our continual feast!
Lord Jesus, you are all I need. Amen.
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