Bare cupboards

Have you ever done something, and when you were finished realized a spiritual lesson was learned in the process?

I open my cupboards, only the bare basics of food items are on the shelves. Beans, dry pasta, a bottle of honey, a single box of cereal only half full, a bag with crumbs of chips in the bottom, seasonings, and a few other miscellaneous items meet my eyes. Its not that I don't like to cook, or that I am anorexic and I am on a starvation diet. No, the truth is I am busy, and I have a habit of eating at the hospital cafeteria at work, or a the little hanger cafe on the days I am at the airport.

Now the problem. In 3 days my Romanian 'sister' Oana is going to be staying with me for 4 days. I am quite certain that she will not find the choices in food very fulfilling or appetizing as meals. So a trip to the store is required.

As I traverse the isles I fill my cart with fruit, veggies, bread, milk, breakfast items and other types of foods that could be considered meals. Some of these things I haven't purchased in quite some time since I can never seem to consume them before they spoil. Then I return home and fill my formerly empty shelves with the items; not before I use some of them to prepare an actual home-cooked meal.

Is there a lesson in my ramblings I can hear you wondering...

Have you ever noticed how easy it is to become "too busy" to replenish the shelves in our hearts with spiritual food? Sure, if you were to look you might find some miscellaneous "food items," but not enough to make a meal. We may get a spiritual feast at church, but if we don't have our own food how are we going to share with others? I find that too many times my spiritual experience is like my experience today; my cupboards are too often allowed to become empty.

The 'staple foods' of our Christian experience are too important to go without! Intellectually I know that I desperately need to feed my soul with spiritual food. Its easy to remember to feed my stomach, because if I don't I am soon reminded by rumblings. But what I need more than anything is to hunger, truly hunger, for the Bread of Life! To realize that I cannot live without it. Work and life are no excuse to neglect this. After all, my vocation should not be my consuming drive, it should simply be the means to enable me to preach and live Christ. But if I don't take the time to feed on the Bread of Life what will I have that is really worth sharing? Absolutly nothing!