Five years ago, R and I were blessed with the opportunity to go to Paris to visit an old friend. Before we were able to meet up with him, we had a night in the city on our own. Our friend had arranged for us to have dinner at a wonderful restaurant. The food was amazing, but the dining experience was even more so. We sat at the table for nearly 3 hours. The courses were served slowly and deliberately. The waiter cleaned our crumbs after every course. The atmosphere was to be savored.
At first, we weren't quite sure what to make of it. In fact, the waiter (who spoke very peckish English) kept saying, "Stop panicking. I can see you're panicking." Coming from a culture that prides itself on how quickly things can be done, we were slow to adapt to French dining.
Yet by the time that meal was done, I knew it was one of the most enjoyable of my life. In fact, the entire week of delighting in our meals was...well, delicious.
Our friend later explained that meal times are almost sacred in France. After eating French cuisine, I can understand why. The French love food. They cherish it. They celebrate it. They are passionate about it. They are known for it.
I want to be passionate about one only food...The Bread of Life.
I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread.
--Job 23:12
How different would life look if we didn't hurry through a meal with Jesus? If we took the time to linger in conversation with Him, hanging on His every Word? What if we ate with abandon and paid no attention to the clock? What if we kept going back for seconds, and thirds?
The foods of this life would no longer satisfy. They wouldn't even come close.
Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.
--John 6:25
4 comments:
I am in John 15 right now. The I am the vine...abide in me chapter. The thought that I have come away with is exactly this. Not work, or do or accomplish things for Christ but be with, know, and enjoy His presence. Guess He must be trying to drive a point home by repeating it here.
Kate
Melissa,
The Lord put this verse in my path today. I have been thinking all day that I will post it on my blog. It quenched my thirst today.
Psalm 63:1-4
1 O God, you are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you,
my body longs for you,
in a dry and weary land
where there is no water.
2 I have seen you in the sanctuary
and beheld your power and your glory.
3 Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.
4 I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands.
You are so right! I was watching the clock just this morning, afraid that I would run over my "alotted" time with the Lord. How ashamed I feel about that now that you have put things in perspective for me.
I plan to eat leisurely with Him tomorrow!
What a beautiful analogy! I am a first-time reader of your blog, as I just followed the invitation you left in Daring Young Mom's blog about Time Management. :) Thanks for leaving a bread-crumb for me to follow to this wonderful bakery full of the bread of life. :)
Heather
sing4th@livejournal.com
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