“I don’t want to send them away hungry, or they will faint along the way.” Matthew 15:32 NLT

Our Lord Jesus had been preaching and teaching for three days, and He was concerned for the physical well-being of the people. He didn’t want them to go away hungry in case they fainted. I am sure this would not have been His first thought, but it wouldn’t have been a good look, and He could have been open to criticism from His enemies if they had.

He never wants to send us away spiritually hungry. After we have been in the presence of God, whether at church or in our homes, we should be the opposite of hungry, filled with His presence. We should no longer feel ‘faint along the way’ but strong in the Lord and the power of His Spirit. The truth is, it is not always so. We often rise from our prayers not having found the presence of God deeply for ourselves. At an earlier point, Jesus had said:

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.” Matthew 5:6 NLT

And so we must teach ourselves to expect to be filled, and if we are not being filled with His Spirit, we should look to remedy that. To connect with the Living God is vital for our spiritual well-being and sustenance.

In this verse, Jesus gives us a clue about achieving this goal. It is by being hungry and thirsty for righteousness. He who seeks will find, but we need to seek first.

Are there times when you feel weak and faint as a Christian? Do you give in to temptation? Is your Christian life filled with peaks and troughs? Then, you need to practice finding the life of God to sustain you daily.

If a person isn’t well, they lose their appetite. Despite the fact they don’t feel like it, they know they must eat regularly so that they grow strong and healthy again. Only when a person is at the end of their life do they stop eating.

Let this be a lesson for all of us. Perhaps you are not well spiritually, you have no appetite for spiritual things. You find reading your Bible a drag and attending church a chore, but you must eat despite the lack of appetite.

Come daily and eat a little something of the word of God and speak little prayers to Him. Teach yourself to love the righteousness of God. If you do this, it will work like medicine, and your appetite will begin to grow. And so, eat morsel by morsel until you grow strong again and enjoy a healthy spiritual life. It will bring a sense of well-being and satisfaction.

“Turn and answer me, O Lord my God! Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die.” Psalm 13:3 NLT