“Jesus said to the people, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” Today we have another saying of Jesus about bread and about his being the bread of life, bread that has come down from heaven to give life to the world…
If these words of Jesus don’t shake us to our core, we need to listen a little more carefully… I know I am guilty of hearing his words over and over again and maybe not taking them as seriously as I should. So, let’s listen again…. Jesus said to the people, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
One of the life lessons that I learned a while back is that for most of us, there is an emptiness within… We spend our lives trying to fill that emptiness, trying to feel more complete… we all know of people who have tried to fill the emptiness with obviously wrong choices; there are other choices that might not be as obviously wrong; maybe the successful career person who seems to have it all together, but is never satisfied and never has enough; the empty nester who doesn’t know what to do now that the kids are gone; the person who spends hours and hours on the computer wondering where the day went and wondering why they have no friends… There’s certainly nothing wrong with being successful, being a parent or enjoying time on the computer… but none of them can do us any good if we don’t pay attention to the ways in which our souls hunger…
Hunger for God is a basic human need… certainly we know about physical hunger; we know that as kingdom people, we have a responsibility to help eliminate physical hunger and need; the hunger for God that causes our souls to ache is much harder for us to admit to, yet it isn’t all that hard to fill…
One of the reasons that the story of St. Francis has always appealed to me, is because Francis took risks that really helped him to see God in everything; he started out as rich young man who had more than he could possibly want or need; and yet it was never enough; somewhere deep in his soul, he longed for peace, he longed for some sense of wholeness that all of his wealth could not buy… it wasn’t until he discarded his money and prestige that he realized what he truly needed; he needed God; he needed to spend his life doing what God asked of him… and I have no doubt that the life he lived was hard; we tend to romanticize his life and reduce him to an ornamental bird bath, but the life Francis lived was wrought with poverty, danger and hunger; and yet, he was happier than he had ever been in his wealthy life.
Most of us, I hope, don’t have to go to such extremes to realize that it is God that we need, although I know many alcoholics and addicts who lost everything before they came to that realization… what do we need to do to realize that Jesus is the bread of OUR lives?
First I think, we need to realize that we’re hungry… I can get so distracted and so busy with other things that I sometimes forget what I need to be a human created in the image of God… It’s kind of like getting so busy that we forget to eat lunch, and then wonder why our blood sugar is crashing at 3 in the afternoon… our spiritual blood sugar if you will, might be less noticeable at first, but eventually we know when we’ve neglected our hunger for God… our spirits crash and things around us become unmanageable… one of the gifts that Francis’ ideas bring to the spiritual life, is recognizing God in all things and in all people, which is a way for us to constantly be aware of God around us…
I think another reason that we have a hard time believing that Jesus is the bread of OUR lives is that we don’t feel worthy of God’s time or care… there are so many more people out there that are in need… why on earth would we matter to God?
Well, rest assured, beloved, we aren’t worthy… and we never really can be… but the good news of the life of Jesus, the feeding of the five thousand, the good news of Easter, is that God’s love is a gift that is given that doesn’t depend on us or our worthiness; all are loved; all are worthy because God’s love makes us worthy, no matter who we are. Not only is there enough love for us, but there’s enough love, enough spiritual bread for everyone… we don’t need to try and hide it from others fearing that it will run out… it can’t run out… There is more than enough for us, more than enough for everyone.
Sometimes, I need to be reminded of God’s love around me… it can be hard for me to see it, and even harder for me to realize that it is abundant enough for all… There’s a great song that makes the point really well. It’s a Bruce Springsteen song called “Land of Hopes and Dreams”. In Springsteen’s vision, it’s not bread, but a train that gives life… I like that image; the church, when it’s paying attention, can be a haven for those who need it; not those who deserve it, but those who need it…. Just as Jesus is the bread of life for all who need him… Here’s what Springsteen says:
Grab your ticket and your suitcase
Thunder’s rolling down the tracks
You don’t know where you’re goin’
But you know you won’t be back
Darlin’ if you’re weary
Lay your head upon my chest
We’ll take what we can carry
And we’ll leave the rest
Big Wheels rolling through fields
Where sunlight streams
Meet me in a land of hope and dreams
I will provide for you
And I’ll stand by your side
You’ll need a good companion for
This part of the ride
Leave behind your sorrows
Let this day be the last
Tomorrow there’ll be sunshine
And all this darkness past
Big wheels roll through fields
Where sunlight streams
Meet me in a land of hope and dreams
This train
Carries saints and sinners
This train
Carries losers and winners
This Train
Carries whores and gamblers
This Train
Carries lost souls
This Train
Dreams will not be thwarted
This Train
Faith will be rewarded
This Train
Hear the steel wheels singin’
This Train
Bells of freedom ringin’
This Train
Carries broken-hearted
This Train
Thieves and sweet souls departed
This Train
Carries fools and kings
This Train
All aboard
This Train
Dreams will not be thwarted
This Train
Faith will be rewarded
This Train
Hear the steel wheels singin’
This Train
Welcome to the land of hopes and dreams…. climb aboard and be fed.