To Do-ers List: Back to School, Pack a Lunch
When my sisters and I were little girls, my mom taught us how to pack our lunch for school. With four daughters, a husband, and a full-time job, she needed to take a few tasks off of her to-do list! So every day I had to pack a lunch. A honey-loaf sandwich, fruit, and a cookie went into my lunch box. Monday through Friday, the same thing. When lunch time would roll around, I’d look wistfully at the Fritos and Twinkies the other kids were snacking on and try to “trade up,” but I didn’t have much ammo to trade with!
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.” Isaiah 55:1
Spiritual Nibbles or a Fortified Feast
As I was thinking about my uninspired lunch, it reminded me of the spiritual food I used to exist on. For years, I nourished myself with honey-loaf bites of the word of God. Day in and day out, I quickly nibbled on a verse or two as I rushed out the door for work. I dutifully drank my spiritual baby milk while God waited for me to “trade up” my milky sustenance for a meatier, stick-to-your ribs meal.
The wonderful thing about God is that I don’t have to beg Him for a treat. I don’t have to buy it. It is there for my taking. What I do have to do is decide that I am going to put in the time that it takes for me to eat a richer meal. Actually, God calls it a feast.
No wonder I was stuck in sin patterns in my life. I didn’t give God the time that the Holy Spirit needed to take my life and transform it into something beautiful. I was stuck in fear, in doubt, basically in a rut, living off leftovers. When I got serious about wanting to change, He began to move in my life. He didn’t force me. The Holy Spirit never does. It’s up to us to follow through.
Tweet ThisFor Today:
Resolve that you are ready to expand your spiritual diet. If you are a new Jesus-follower, then by all means, start at the beginning and get grounded in the basics of the faith. But if you have been a believer for a while and are still subsisting on baby food, move up to solid food.
What will that look like for you?
It may mean you sign up for a Bible study. Perhaps you’ve thought about taking a Bible class for credit or personal study through a ministry or university (see the resource section below — several free classes!). God has His eye on someone whom He wants to start teaching a class. Perhaps you should be mentored or are ready to mentor someone else. Maybe studying a book about developing your prayer life is on your to do-ers list.
With unlimited possibilities before you, pray about it and ask the Holy Spirit to show you what your next step is. Write this down on your app or in your notes and tell someone else what you’re thinking. Accountability never hurts! If you’d like to, feel free to share in the comment section what your spiritual feast might look like. And post on Twitter if you’d like about what you’re doing using the hashtag #ToDoers.
Resources:
To help you organize your daily study and record your experiences, please download and print the following PDF, or download the journal app to your favorite Apple device.
- To Do-ers List Study Guide PDF
- Days Lite: My Wonderful Life App free app from App Store.
- Online Bible Classes
- Biblical Training – many free classes
- Gordon Conwell free classes, called Dimensions of the Faith
Don’t forget to comment on your experience in the comment section below! Choose your verse/s for today and be a Do-er of the Word.
School is in session. Remember to pack your lunch!
Previous Sessions of To Do-ers List, Back to School:
I am struck by the concept of time. Feasts are never quick events. Lavish gourmet meals take hours to prepare and consume. I need to think how I prepare my heart for the feast. Am I filling up on fritos and french fries and wondering why i have no appetite for filet and pate? Feasting requires truth and time and it results in freedom from sin and great fruitfulness! Great post!
That is so true, Mary! My eye is always on the clock waiting for the next thing instead of being fully invested in where I am now. God wants our whole hearts.
I feel your heart on the issue of time. There never seems to be enough. I want to focus today on what is before me and enjoy and feast upon those moments. Choosing to trust in the Lord with all my heart and lean not on my own understanding.
I love your insights, Michelle, about “focusing on today on what is before me and enjoy and feast upon those moments.” I heard someone say recently “today is all we are promised.” We do need to plan for tomorrow but not at the expense of missing what God has given us today. Blessings to you!
Michelle, Thankfully God is not bound by time. He is the great I AM of the past, present and future!