January 20

Man does not live by bread alone

                Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these 40 years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.  He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.  Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these 40 years.  Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you.  Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him.  For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.  When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you.

Deuteronomy 8:2-10

            God is speaking to a people who have spent decades, generations even, in the wilderness.  It is all they know.  It is all they remember.  Every day is wrapped up in the struggle to survive.  They have no homes.  They have no reserves of food or water.  They have no allies and they have a surplus of enemies all around them.  The only thing that they have going for them is that God is with them, leading them and sustaining them.  They depend on Him for safety and direction and the very food and water that keeps them alive.  Were He to abandon them, were He to decide they were not worth His time…they would be dead within a week.  But He did not leave them.  Not once.  Not for the entire 40 years that they were nomads in the wilderness. 

            And the land that He is taking them to?  It is not just average.  It is not just somewhere, anywhere, to settle.  It is rich and it is lavish and it is overflowing with goodness.  For a people who have only known struggling through scarcity, the idea of a land of prosperity is the very picture of heaven on earth.  But God’s warning to His people is not to be seduced by the fruits of the land, do not fall in love with peace and prosperity for “man does not live by bread alone.”  It is God that sustains us.  It is God that keeps us.  It is God that gives us a life worth living.  Circumstances change.  Wealth comes and goes.  Both rich and poor can be miserable and dead inside if they are separated from their creator.  Both rich and poor can be vibrant and joyful, living meaningful lives if they are guided by Him.

            Many of us relate with the Israelites in the desert.  We have struggled for decades and are weary.  We cannot remember what life was like before and we have no idea how it will get better.  We simply wake up with each new dawn and hope that we have the strength to face the challenges before collapsing at night.  I have two words from this passage for us:

·                  *  Man does not live by bread alone.  It is not the size of our bank accounts or the amount of sleep that we got last night or access to the newest therapy that sustains us and makes our lives good or bad.  We are called to love and to be loved by our Creator and by those around us.  If we can do that, we can endure the most dire circumstances and still honestly proclaim that our life is amazing.

·                    *  There is a better land coming.  Some of us will get to see a better life here on Earth.  The kids will grow up and develop great social strategies.  The therapies will work.  The sleepless nights will fade into memories and we will enter the promised land.  Some of us will not see those days while we still live.  Some of us will have to wait until after death to see all that our hearts yearn for.  And that is ok because that day is still coming.  The Promised Land is still coming and it will be more awe-inspiring than anything we can dream up.  So we persist because God sustains us in the here and now because He has promised that there is a better time to come just up ahead.

A moment to reflect:

How has God sustained you through the desert?

Refrigerator Art of the Day:

D Age 11