Food in the Pantry

Bible Reading: 2 Timothy 3:14-17

Carrying the last bags of groceries, Ariana staggered into the community food pantry. Her Sunday school class had washed cars all day in exchange for donations of grocery items. As she put away the canned goods, she was pleased to see the large amount of food on the shelves. “No one will go hungry now,” she told her friend Bryn as they joined the group for the ride back to church.

When Ariana got home, she found Mom in the kitchen. “You should see all the food we collected,” she said happily. “It’s like our pantry at home when you’ve found a lot of different things on sale.”

Mom smiled. “Collecting food was a worthwhile thing to do. I’m glad you spent time on that. And I’m glad you appreciate the food in our pantry too.” Mom gave Ariana’s shoulder a squeeze. “Just think of all that good food in our pantry. What would happen if we were glad we had it but never ate it?”

“No chance of that,” said Knox, Ariana’s brother who had just come in. He laughed. “We all like food too much!”

Ariana laughed too. “If we never ate it, we’d all get very hungry, but Knox is right. That would never happen.”

“No,” Mom agreed, “and that’s good, because our bodies need food to grow and stay strong. We need physical nourishment. The thing is, I’m wondering if we remember that we need spiritual nourishment too. The Bible is like our pantry. It’s loaded with food—spiritual food. It teaches us about Jesus and how He saves us from sin. He uses it to encourage us and help us grow. We can be glad God’s Word is there for us, but if we never ‘eat’ it—that is, read and study it—it can’t feed us.”

Ariana nodded. “That should never happen either, should it?”

“Nope,” Knox said. “We need spiritual food too much to let that happen, right?”

“Right,” said Mom. “Physical food is important, but let’s be sure to remember that spiritual food is important too.” Karen E. Cogan

How About You?

What’s your favorite food? Is it a main dish or a special snack that you enjoy? Do you have a favorite spiritual food too—perhaps a Bible passage you especially like or a verse you think of often? Both physical and spiritual nourishment are important. Enjoy your breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but don’t forget to eat spiritual meals too. Read the Bible and think about what Jesus has done for you. Ask Him to feed you—to teach you—from His Word.

Today’s Key Verse:
Matthew 4:4 People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. (NLT)

Today’s Key Thought:

Feed your soul