“Why do you keep wasting what you have on things that can never really satisfy your hunger? Listen to Me with all your heart and mind, and I will give you the very best of what you really need to thrive. Allow your soul to delight itself in the abundance I have for you” (Isaiah 55:2, my paraphrase).
The verse from Isaiah 55 means a great deal to me. I have done some longer fasts, and after a few weeks you get pretty hungry. There were times, though, I’d spend listening to Him or reading the Bible, and come away feeling physically full, like I had just eaten a really good meal. It shocked me. It still does. When I allow Him to speak to every part of my heart and mind, He fills me with such a completely different and amazing reality of wholeness, confidence, peace, love, and joy that even my physical body responds.
God offers that true satisfaction every day to anyone who is willing to receive it. So many have the self-destructive habit of consuming negativity, of feeding themselves on the knowledge of what could go wrong, or rehearsing who hurt them and who owes them. The insidious thing about that is you can get so overwhelmed by the fear of negative outcomes that you create an atmosphere around yourself that is unable to receive anything good. Negativity and unforgiveness should come with warning labels just like cigarettes. We are inundated with information about what physical foods are good or bad, but often feed our souls garbage. Sometimes we get so confused and overwhelmed by negativity we don’t even know what is good anymore. If you let God speak to your soul, you’ll know again, because He is good. He is love. And He is for you.
Feast on His goodness. Let yourself become healed, whole, joyful, confident, and energized by what God tells you. Even when He convicts you of sin, it’s like eating fresh bread that heals your soul with every bite. Allow yourself to truly enjoy living in His presence, instead of disqualifying yourself when you make a mistake and throwing yourself in spiritual jail and emotional hell. He never leaves you, never forsakes you, and is always ready to turn your dark thoughts and negative circumstances into brilliant perspective and amazing opportunities. Delight yourself in who Jesus is for you, and who you are in Him. You are a completely loved, totally favored, fantastically empowered child of God. Live like it today!
Equip Your Spirit 