Recently, every time I turned on the evening news, there was video footage of yet another western wild fire consuming trees and homes and everything else in its path. These fires were being fueled by extremely dry and windy conditions. At the same time, every time I viewed a local weather forecast, the words "showers and thunderstorms" were more often than not a part of the forecast. And with the recent rains, the landscape of Lancaster County is looking quite green and lush! So as I think of the variety of weather being experienced in our country these days ... the expression, "feast or famine" comes to mind. We are feasting on the benefits of adequate (to almost too adequate!) amounts of rainfall while much of the western United States is suffering from a famine of beneficial rains!
Life in general can be a lot like that. Feast or famine. We experience a time when life is “going
well.” The kids are doing super at
school, our marriage is vibrant, the job is going great, our health is good and
our walk with God is strong. Then
suddenly we find ourselves enduring a famine.
The kids are misbehaving, our marriage seems stale, the job is
frustrating, our health is fragile and our walk with God almost non-existent. Feast or famine. Most of us, I would guess, handle the feast
times pretty well. I mean, who doesn't like a feast? But we all struggle with
the times of famine. Let me suggest
something that I always find helpful when I face times of famine in my own
life. I take a trip. A long trip.
Really? Yep. But I don’t book any airline tickets or pack
any bags. All I do is pull out my Bible
and take a trip back in time some 3000 years to the Old Testament book of
Psalms. In this intensely personal writings
I find the words of individuals who are in the midst of feast ... and in the
midst of famine. Their experience
resonates with my soul. And as they work
through their famine times – I find hope for me. So the next time you feel
yourself in a time of famine, open to the book of psalms. For there you will find fellow travelers who
work through their famine as they move ever closer to God!
Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj
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