Think About it

             Think About It

            On Sunday, September 15, a hot, humid August day in September, my parish held its annual major fund raiser—Festival on First—from 12:30 to 4:30.

            Festival goers did not lack activities in which to participate.  Children could have their faces painted, go fishing, or go down the bouncy slide.

            Adults could buy tickets for lottery drawings and hope they’d win a prize.

            They could sit in the shade and enjoy the entertainment—a Hispanic praise band and a medley of opera songs, including “Ave Maria” sung by the associate pastor.

            But the main attraction of the day was the food, and many choices were available.  A majority of foods were authentic Mexican or Central American, from posole, to burritos, to enchiladas.  Pork burgers and hot dogs were available, as were DQ Blizzards and various home baked bars. 

            To the dismay of late comers, most of the food was gone by 3:30.  The pork burgers held out until 4:30 and some hot dogs were left.  These were given away, and who turns away free food?

            The day was a delightful day of fun, fellowship and food.  When we read and study the New Testament, we see Jesus enjoying fellowship with his friends, and oftentimes that fellowship included food—he visited his friends Lazarus, Mary and Martha—and he ate with them.  He cooked breakfast for his apostles.

            Into the 21^st Century we’ve continued this custom of combining food with fellowship.  As I thought of this practice, in which even Jesus participated, I thought of how we tend to condemn ourselves for eating.

            Maybe we need to step back for a minute and think about this:  “Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens” (James 1:17 NLT).  Our bodies need food.  It is a gift from God to keep ourselves healthy.

            Too often, I think, we tend to look at our eating negatively—“Oh, why did I eat that?”  “Oh I ate too much.”

            Maybe we need to reverse our thinking and be positive—“Thank you, God, for the gift of food, which nourishes my body.”

            Think about it.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            Sharon Witty