When it comes to food, God provides and man derides. God gave Adam and Eve all kinds of good food in the garden of Eden (Gn 2:16). Sadly, their craving to eat beyond what God provided led to mankind's downfall (Gn 3:6ff).
God then provided miraculous manna to the Israelites when they were stranded in the desert (Ex 16:14ff). He "furnished them bread from heaven, ready to hand, untoiled-for, endowed with all delights and conforming to every taste" (Wis 16:20). The manna even "was blended to whatever flavor each one wished"! (Wis 16:21) All this revealed God's sweetness toward His children (Wis 16:21). However, the Israelites in the desert soon wearied of this miraculous, tasty fare. They were "disgusted with this wretched food" (Nm 21:5) that God provided. They wanted meat, fish, cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic (Nm 11:4-5).
Then, God once again provided His children with miraculous Bread from heaven. The infant Jesus came down from heaven and was placed in a manger, a feeding trough. This reveals that Jesus is Food. His "flesh is real food" (Jn 6:55). To make it unmistakable, Jesus proclaims: "I am the Bread of Life...I Myself am the Living Bread come down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread he shall live forever; the bread I will give is My flesh, for the life of the world" (Jn 6:48, 51). Jesus in the Eucharist is God's ultimate banquet. Will we reject this heavenly food? Or, will we gratefully eat what God provides?
| PRAYER: | Father, may what enters and leaves my mouth be totally under Your lordship. |
| PROMISE: | "Philip launched out with this Scripture passage as his starting point, telling him the good news of Jesus." –Acts 8:35 |
| PRAISE: | Jesus set Sam free from an addiction to pornography. Now Sam is active in the fight to defend life |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College