Jan. 5 - Not By Bread Alone.

Greetings Beloved,

In the gospel of St. Matthew chapter 4, we see Jesus, after being baptized, was led by the Holy Spirit out into the wilderness for prayer and meditation on God's word. He fasted for forty days and forty nights, not eating any bread or food, and afterwards He was hungry. Then the devil appeared to Him and tempted Jesus to eat by saying, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” Jesus rebuked him sternly with His reply; “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God."

As human beings we are composed of three aspects; spirit, soul, and body (Hebrews 4:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:23), and as such we must realize that just as it is important to feed and nourish our physical body, we must also nourish our spiritual self. God's word the Bible is spiritual food, and if we do not read it and meditate on it we can become spiritually weak, and ineffective as His witnesses.

Now days our society is super conscious of diet and nutrition, so much so that we have a television network devoted to food and hundreds of books containing the latest fad diets lining the shelves at our local bookstores. Truth is that bread, milk, fruits and vegetables aren't enough. We need to get our daily dose of spiritual nourishment as well. In my experience, the best way to accomplish this is an early morning quiet time with God for Bible reading and prayer (like the Daily Office). Contemplate the words of the Psalmist; "How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through Your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Psalm 119:103-105). Are you spiritually starving or are you feeding on God's word?

Pray with me... Heavenly Father, help us to tap into the rich spiritual resources that Your word holds for us. As we read Your word Lord, we pray that You would nourish our spirits and cleanse our thoughts. Set our minds aright that we may see clearly to worship You. In Your Sons holy name we pray. AMEN!

God's blessings to you all,
Fr. Ernest+