hunger is a language

last night in worship, we learned something in our teaching about hungering for God. it made sense to me, not at first, but after i chewed on it for a bit.

jason westerfield was discussing how to access God "on earth as it is in Heaven" - this has been our focus the last few weeks. he talked about how God coming into our daily lives is much related to our hunger for him. he called hunger a "heavenly language." his point is that in heaven, worship for God is natural, and ongoing, and desperate in reverance and awe. in the realm of heaven, you are hungry for God.

i could relate that analogy to my own walk. back before i really knew or cared if knew God, i was not hungry for Him. AT ALL. i was concerned with me most of the time, and looking for a "spiritual satisfaction" which ultimately made me look cool. my hunger was mostly for worldly things, or things that fit into my idea of how smart i was. ultimately, i guess i was hungry for more of me.

then, one year (1996 i believe) - i started to get an appetite for God. it began innocently enough, when i began to run. it changed my body, and i was excited because i thought this newfound attractiveness was going to get me somewhere. i wasn't looking for God, but sometimes in the mornings on a run, i would look around me and think "if there is a God, He must be here." that was probably one of my first appetizers.

it would take many years before i was ready for the next course. it came during a crisis, and i was just. plain. hungry. lost and reaching out for anything that would satisfy. anything that would stop the pain. it was a desperate, growling hunger, and God met me there, introduced Himself and fed me a good meal. still, it was not a heavenly hunger. i learned to go to God and let Him feed me, but then would choose to go away for days/weeks/months/years without hungering again.

lately, my hunger has been changing. it's becoming more pronounced. i'm not just hungry for THINGS i want God to do in my life, but hungry for who God is. if hunger is a language in Heaven, i would say i am starting to learn a couple of words. maybe i'm in Hunger 101 class right now :)

i have a feeling that if i keep on the path, hunger will become more and more beautiful to me. And as much as He is the God who fills us, He is infinite, and will always leave us hungering/seeking/wanting more of Him. and really, we were created to be starving. and for Him to be the answer. as we are in the midst of the holiest of holy weeks, let God come in and feed you. you know you are hungry, and so does He.

for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.
psalm 107:9