January 25th, 2012
Appetite
Okay, I’m going to let you in on some of the excitement that my wife, Roxann, and I have in our private conversations. Here’s a common conversation of ours. “Where do you want to eat?” “I don’t know. Where do you want to eat?” “I don’t know. You decide.” Yes, we’re boring. But, I bet you can you relate! Right?!
Inevitably, as we repeat that mind-numbing conversation, one of us mentions how we wish we could go to Chick-fil-a or the Cheesecake Factory…two restaurants that we’re always hungering for because there isn’t one near us. When we travel, we’ll actually go out of our way to eat at one of those “heavenly places.”
However, the same use to be true of Carrabba’s, P.F.Chang’s, and even Baha Fresh. But, not any more. They came to our area. We ate at them frequently…too frequently. And now, they’ve just become like every other restaurant in our area. BORING! We go once in a while. They still have decent food. But, they’re old hat. We can have them any time. We want something different.
And, there we have it. The interesting truth about appetite. We tend to hunger and long for what we can’t have rather than what we can have. It tends to be a huge problem in our lives…in every area. Relationally…we tend to get bored being with the person we once would have given anything to spend a day with. Vocationally…we tend to get bored with the job we once would have given anything to have a shot at. And, tragically…the same thing happens spiritually.
Of course, when it comes to restaurants, who cares if we get bored and move on to other ones. It makes no difference. But, when it comes to our relational, vocational, and, more importantly, spiritual lives, we all need to care. It’s a big deal. If we get bored in our spiritual lives, we can (and will) get our minds on the wrong things and make messed up choices. (e.g. Peter in Matthew 16:23 - Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”)
The question is: what can we do? Here’s a suggestion…we can intentionally do new things to keep our spiritual lives fresh without changing the underlying appetite. We can’t stop hungering for God and His Word. But, we can try new recipes for filling and fulfilling the hunger.
Here’s one example from my life. I used to read the Bible through every year…year after year. To be honest, it got boring. It became a bit formulaic and even ritualistic for me. So, I began doing alternative things every other year. (e.g. Having read through the Bible last year…this year I’m taking a deep dive into the life and teaching of Jesus in the Gospels and reading as many books as possible focused on Jesus Himself.)
Point: I didn’t stop hungering for God and His Word. On the contrary, I’ve actually increased my hunger by intentionally doing “new things” that keep me growing in and longing for the right things. (I’ve done the same thing by getting involved in new areas and ways of serving.)
I’m curious…does this make sense to you? If so, what are some ways that you’ve kept from getting “bored” and “off track” in your spiritual life?
Categorized: Christian Living, Life Change |
Heather
This is a great topic. However, I feel different when comes to being “hungry” for things I haven’t had in a while. For example I find that when I stay away from something like taco bell or mc Donald’s I feel like I was craving them but when I finally eat it it’s not as good as I remembered and it keeps me away.. This is a good thing because now I cook more from home I feel my food taste better and make healthier choices. I feel the same with my belief in God. The more I stay away from things that are bad for me such as bad fast food I can focus more on things that are better for me ergo my faith
jerry
This makes sense..repetition often reduces awareness…perhaps the Holy Spirit pulls/pushes us away from what is merely ritual by acknowledgement.
Michael Strugala
Hello Pastor Powell,
I’m currently researching different versions of the bible, NIV and NASB. My reasoning is to find a bible that offers the most clear and concise version possible. I recently picked up an updated 2011 version of the NIV and notice subtle changes where words like mankind, they etc are used. Also, I was wondering why some deutorocanon books are included and what the reasoning was behind having them objected. Any thoughts on this or suggestions? Thanks and best regards,
Michael
Michael
I like your suggestion of mixing it up or trying new ingredients. The same routine day in day out will most likely yield the same result…boredom! I think of new ingredients like volunteer work, outreach opportunities or mission trips. As we try these new things out, it isn’t saying our hunger for God is lost, but is transformed in a way where we are going out and serving others…keeping the hunger and thirst strong.
Judy
Please do not tell me that you eat a chicken sandwich for breakfast!
Rob Harris
Small group, it always keeps me interested in God’s word, along with Northridge, New Life and all the awesome people that show God’s love at Northridge.
vida bartkus
I go where i am led. prayers answ sometimes just because i “thought” something. i prayed last year n also spoke w ppl bout alternatives to NRC bible study cause my work schd n my husb’s sch just dont lv time for this pursuit. what i needed was an online bible study that could be accessed 24/7/365 n 1 day foolin around on the phone..YouBible was directed to me which is xtactly what was prayed for..bible studies..multitudes of them avail thru my app ph 24/7/:365. PTL
Kayla
I love this topic. I can relate to it concerning to church service. We went to the same church service for 18 years and when we came to North Ridge for the first time I was blown away. I sat up taller, wrote more notes, was more awake and alive in Christ than I had in 20 years…. And this also made me think of how this could be a reason why some people make the mistake of divorce or affairs, they get bored, and they forget the consequences of their choices. Thank you for engaging us.
Chris A.
Brad,
Yes, this makes total sense. Maybe you need a change? Instead of focusing on the macro focus on the micro or instead of practice focus on theory. Or maybe you are just burnt out and need a vacation. As they say absence makes the heart grow fonder; but I have a sneaky suspicion that if you say, take a cruze liner to Tarshish, he’ll have a funny way of hunting you down.
Actually as I read through this, what it sounds like is that maybe you feel like this because you are supposed to. Maybe this is God’s way of saying that to grow towards him you must grow towards other people, not a musty old room with a bible and a reading lamp.
It just sounds to me like you are looking for ways to keep it fresh and new.
Hope that helps.
Chris A.
Also, one other minor note: Repetition is a great learning tool. We had to LEARN how to tie our shoes, but when it becomes repetition then it frees us up to move on and learn new things. In other words, when something starts to become repetitive it usually means you’ve mastered it and it’s time to move on to master even more.
But (because I like monkey wrenches so I’ll throw one in here) remember this wise saying:
“Most people practice until they get it right, the true masters practice until they don’t get it wrong”