Saturday 10 Jun 2017

June 10: Proverbs 23:1-3

Key Verse: Proverbs 23:3
Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive.

Devotion:
One of the things most people will always find hard to resist is loads of food, especially men! But just how far you let yourself go is at question here. Whilst it is no sin to ensure you do have enough to eat, going overboard for no good reason is just wrong. We need to make sure we are not going to be wasteful with what we have nor to allow ourselves to be tempted by what others put before us. God showed the people of Israel this when they were in the desert by supplying just the right amount of mana for each person.

When we go to a party in celebration of something, we are going for a reason and that is to celebrate. In many such cases, we are to take part in a feast as part of that celebration. Whether we are going to eat and drink ourselves full or eat and drink until we are sick is a choice we need to make. As part of the celebration, we are expected to enjoy what is put before us – but we are not expected to eat and drink ourselves sick. Should we do so, we are making the choice to be greedy and go too far, we are the ones letting ourselves go too far with the temptation.

Another side of the great food debate will be that of someone tempting you away from what you should be doing with tempting foods and drinks. It is very easy to be tempted by luxury and sensual food and drink, and even easier when we are hungry. But just because we may be hungry or desirous of that food and drink, it does not mean we should just accept it. We have to make sure we are not being drawn into something we are not seeing. Just as your parents would have taught you not to accept sweets from strangers, we need to carry on with that philosophy through life – don't just go with the flow, think about the reasons behind the offer before you jump in!

Why all the focus on food? Because it is one of the easiest things that will let us down... We do enjoy good food and drink. We do like to have luxuries. But we need to be wary of anyone who is offering us an abundance of food and drink without good cause.

Points to Ponder:
Do you accept everything from strangers?

God supplies our needs but we need to make sure we don't take too much.