“Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes
to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.””
- John 6:35
If you’re like me, yesterday’s Thanksgiving dinner was
probably the biggest meal you’ve eaten all year. Between the turkey and
dressing, the dinner rolls, the mashed potatoes, and the green beans, it may
have seemed like the food would never stop coming—and then you realized dessert
hadn’t even been brought out yet. By the time the dishes were clean and the Cowboys
had kicked off, you were completely stuffed.
When you finish a meal like that, it feels like you’ll never
be hungry again. But after a good night’s sleep, I have a sneaking suspicion
you woke up this morning and, whether immediately or after a couple of hours,
your stomach started to growl. For all you may have eaten yesterday, all it took
was some time before you were ready for more.
Just like physical hunger, part of being human is feeling
spiritual hunger, a desire to tap into something bigger than yourself, to
encounter something transcendent. When you see a majestic mountain vista or are
enraptured by a work of art, when you are moved by a proverb first uttered
thousands of years ago, any of these moments or others like them can fill that
need…for a little while. But before long, you find yourself hungry again. Our
world offers thousands of spiritual snacks, but none permanently satisfies.
What the world cannot do—fill the emptiness inside, provide
life with sacred meaning—Christ can, if you place your faith in him. Jesus said
to a spiritually hungry crowd, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me
will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” Faith
in Jesus satisfies your soul’s longings not just for the moment, but for the
duration. So this Thanksgiving weekend, as you continue to enjoy food and
fellowship with your family, may you know where spiritual hunger becomes
spiritual fulfillment: at the cross.
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