Hungry and Thirsty

Y'all might be wondering why the Beatitudes keep showing up on my blog lately... That's cuz at church we're doing a pretty awesome teaching series on the Beatitudes. Check it out.

This is definitely my favourite beatitude.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled. -Matthew 5:6

Hungry and thirsty.

I've seen that.

And filled.

I've seen that, too.

I live in that. 

People fill restaurants and restaurants fill people until the people fill gyms. And gyms empty people so they fill the restaurants again to get filled again but they're still not full.

So they fill their houses with TVs and couches and beds and they fill their animals too, until pets are obese while children starve but they're still not full.

So they fill their lives with things to do and people to see and events to attend and maybe even charities to support but they're still. not. full.

It's a trap so easily fallen into here at home. Here in North America where the American Dream lurks in every corner as an unrecognized temptation.

And then there's the hungry. 

How did Jesus know to use those words? Hungry and thirsty. Not yearning or wanting, because the rich do that too. He used words associated with the poor. 

Maybe because he wants us, the rich, to associate with the poor. With the hungry and the thirsty.

To learn from their faith. The hungry faith. The faith that prays, "I don't have enough. Father, be my enough."

The hungry aren't filled with worldly things. They have room for His righteousness.

And maybe that's the curse of the First World. We don't have room and we don't want to make room because His righteousness takes up a lot of space. Like, everything.

And who would want to give up everything? Who would want to willingly be hungry?

But Jesus asks us to do it. To give up the Dream. To detach from the stuff and the pleasure and the comfort. 

And most hear this and go away sad because they just can't do it.

But he made a promise.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled.

They will be filled. It's a promise.

If you give it all up, if you let yourself be hungry for His righteousness, He will fill you.

Promise.

And he never breaks his promises.