Day 25
A Countdown to Listening to Jesus in the land of the Bible
Jesus said to them, “I have food to eat that you don’t know about.” … Jesus said to them, “I am fed by doing the will of the one who sent me and by completing his work.
John 4:32,34 CEB
Unfortunately, no one has to remind me to stop and eat. It’s more like they have remind me to stop eating. Food has always been a joyful thing to me. I have fond memories of home cooked meals growing up. My mother was a fantastic cook. In scripture, we find the concept of feasting through the Old and New Testaments. In fact, it’s the central theme of our redemption story. One day we will all feast with Jesus around the table at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:9). Each time we as Christians celebrate the Holy Eucharist (Communion), we are pointing to the great feast of the Lamb that will be the consummation of all feasting.
While scripture does have a lot to say about feasting, it also has much to say about fasting. Sometimes filling ourselves isn’t just about eating food. That’s what Jesus meant in John 4 when He said He had a kind of food that his disciples didn’t know about. You know that feeling you get from the satisfaction of knowing your work was a job well done? That feeling fills us to a point of satisfaction such that we don’t need anything else – sometimes, not even food. For Jesus, nothing was more satisfying than knowing He was doing the will of the Father.
Fasting, which is denying ourselves of food or other elements for a specified time that we may concentrate more fully on God and His Word, letting that fill us. When we begin to concentrate on Christ and His will for us we begin to see Him accomplish great things in and through us. Our upcoming pilgrimage is about taking time to do just that, concentrate on Jesus and His Word as we relive His story in His land.
Pilgrimage is about fasting and feasting. I would encourage each of you to begin fasting in some measure as you prepare to leave over the next 25 days. And to my readers, you too can begin fasting as you prepare to follow along with us. Fasting prepares us for great things from God.
As we step into the Holy Land in just 25 more days, a great feast will begin. We will be literally sitting at the table with Christ and His Holy Spirit as we fellowship and learn in the Land of the Bible. Believe me, the feasting that lies ahead of you on this pilgrimage is like a food you nothing about.
Day 25 has begun…
Shalom,
Pastor Brad
image credit: http://www.desiringgod.org/articles/feasting-on-thanksgiving
“Are you ready? All systems are go in T minus 5-4-3-2-1 – Blast-off!” Ever since I was a boy watching Major Astro on TV each day after school, I’ve loved countdowns. They’re exciting. They bring you to the moment when something big is about to happen. In 30 days from today something big will happen. I will be leading a team of 17 people on pilgrimage to the Holy Land. We will leave for Israel on January 9, 2017 and return on January 18.