“The bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. . .  I AM the bread of life; whoever comes to me will not hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”  Jesus in The Gospel of St. John 6

“People ate the bread of angels.” Psalm 78:25

“Am I going to eat today?”  That’s the question I posed last week in regards to the millions that are facing famine in the world.  Let me ask you, are you aware of a famine that is closer to home?  I don’t mean in the “food deserts” of inner cities, or even among those “working poor” who are trying to make a living and feed their families on minimum wage.  I wonder, are you experiencing famine in your own life? I’m not referring to a physical famine, but a spiritual one.

“Am I going to eat today?” I would invite you to put that into a spiritual context.  “Am I going to feed my soul? And if so, WHAT am I going to feed it?”

There is a story of grandfather in the Cherokee tribe who told his grandson that there are two wolves living inside each person.  One wolf consists of greed, envy, jealousy, anger, and so forth.  The other wolf is made up of kindness, goodness, graciousness, mercy, etc.  These two wolves constantly fight with each other.  “Which one will win?” asked the grandson.  “The one you feed” answered his grandfather.

So posed another way, the question is:  “Which wolf are you feeding?”

The younger son in the parable we looked at last week was feeding the wolf that led him to separate himself from his Father, from the source of all that was good, and into “wild living.”  And that, as we now, resulted in him starving.  I believe this story of Jesus’ is a metaphor for spiritual starvation.  The young son had separated himself from the source of “Living Bread.”  He was spiritually famished.  He was feeding the bad wolf. It was only by returning to his Father that he was able to again be fed, to be whole, to be loved, to be united to The One that provides lasting spiritual nourishment.

In John 6 Jesus fed the multitudes.  They continued to follow Him, desiring more food from “The Bread King.”  They wanted him to provide daily manna, like God had done for the Israelites of old.  Jesus reminded them that people ate that bread and died, but He had another bread, He IS another bread, that people can eat from and never die—spiritually.  He directed their attention to Himself.  He invited them to feed on Him in faith. 

In practical terms, what does this mean?  Following are some possibilities:

 Setting aside “eating time” each day.

o Early in the Morning—the time of Resurrection and New Life.

o Mid-Day Meditation

o Evening time for Giving Thanks for the mercies of the day.

Having a diverse menu consisting of:

o Reading, “Ingesting”, and Pondering The Word (as Mary did)

o Being alone to pray silently (as Jesus did)

o Regularly participating in Worship (as the first Followers of The

Way did)

o Receiving The Eucharist (The Body and Blood of Christ)

There are other ways, but these provide some ideas.  And here’s the thing, when one eats of “Living Bread” and is filled, it automatically makes us want to share this bread with others.

Sharing Bread with Others might mean any of the following:

o Visiting those who are alone, sick, or suffering.

o Volunteering at Crossroads or the AP Food Bank.

o Distributing “Grace Packets” from APCC to the unhoused.

o Taking a short-term mission trip.

o Supporting a missionary or reliable Relief Organization.

o Sponsoring a child in a country facing famine.

o Advocating for policies and programs that support the root

causes of severe food shortages. So again, I ask, what wolf are you feeding?  And