Don’t Spoil Your Dinner

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

Matthew 5:6

Has an adult ever told you, “Don’t eat that. You’ll spoil your dinner,”? We usually hear those words when we are looking for a snack in the afternoon and are about to eat something less than nutritious. We hit the kitchen, ready to pop the top on some Pringles or unwrap a smile with a Little Debbie, only to hear a voice of wisdom and warning: “Don’t eat that. You’ll spoil your dinner.”

Our parents know what we sometimes struggle to learn: if we fill up on junk food we’ll have two problems: first, we won’t feel hungry when dinner is ready; second, we won’t get enough nutrition to keep us from getting hungry in the night. Our parents help us learn the discipline of waiting so that we are hungry for the right things. 

The same thing is true spiritually. Sometimes we aren’t hungry or thirsty for righteousness—God’s will and God’s way—because we fill up on things that aren’t pleasing to God. Maybe we don’t desire for our speech to be holy because we are easily drawn into conversations that are mean spirited. Maybe we don’t study diligently because we are fine with barely passing grades. Maybe we don’t look for ways to dress modestly because it’s easier to be accepted by our peers when we dress like them.

Sin is like junk food: in the moment it seems like a good option, but in the long run it’s deadly. That’s why the apostle Paul commands us to “run away from childish indulgence” and to “run after mature righteousness.”

Father, make me hungry for the righteousness that comes by faith by denying myself the sinful junk this world constantly offers.