Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Galatians 5:16
The lust of the flesh. I have always read this as referring to sexual sins. While that is the primary definition, Lust also refers to a "passionate desire for something." Crave, cover, want, longing, yearning. Obviously that can cover more than sex, though with a negative connotation. The other night, we watched "Cutthroat Kitchen" and the first challenge was sliders. Man, those sliders looked good. And the next day, I wanted a slider. During my noon weights class, those sliders crept into my brain. Sliders. Hamburgers. I could smell the wonderful aroma in my head. And then we went to Cubby's (a sports bar) for supper. I didn't completely give in to the lust of my flesh as opted for a side salad with my plain cheeseburger. But it was lust. I lusted after a hamburger; it penetrated my thoughts when I should have been thinking on other things. And that lust took me to a place I hadn't planned to go that night. [How easily does lust do that?]
And there is that word again "Crave" A strong desire for something, to want greatly, to yearn for. No mention of food at all. So why do we immediately go to food with crave? There are other more important things I should crave: time with my husband, hugs from my daughters, walks with the Spirit. These are things I need and things I do have a strong desire for, things I yearn for. Yet it seems kind of weird, uncomfortable to say I crave these things. Is it because Crave seems to have a negative connotation, much like Lust does? Crave gives an impression of weakness. Can I use it for strength? I am weak without the Spirit. I need the Spirit to fill me so I can change my cravings for food and set my sights on things not of this world, of better and more important things.
On Monday, Cris asked us to come up with a one word reason for why we were there. 2 came to mind for me: Community and Crave. I ended up going with Crave. I think I chose it because I'm also reading "Made to Crave" by Lysa TerKeurst. I've had this on my list for a while and finally bought it and a devotional companion. In the very beginning, this told me I picked up the right book:
And there is that word again "Crave" A strong desire for something, to want greatly, to yearn for. No mention of food at all. So why do we immediately go to food with crave? There are other more important things I should crave: time with my husband, hugs from my daughters, walks with the Spirit. These are things I need and things I do have a strong desire for, things I yearn for. Yet it seems kind of weird, uncomfortable to say I crave these things. Is it because Crave seems to have a negative connotation, much like Lust does? Crave gives an impression of weakness. Can I use it for strength? I am weak without the Spirit. I need the Spirit to fill me so I can change my cravings for food and set my sights on things not of this world, of better and more important things.
On Monday, Cris asked us to come up with a one word reason for why we were there. 2 came to mind for me: Community and Crave. I ended up going with Crave. I think I chose it because I'm also reading "Made to Crave" by Lysa TerKeurst. I've had this on my list for a while and finally bought it and a devotional companion. In the very beginning, this told me I picked up the right book:
Like I said before, I KNOW the stuff, but this is about finding my want to. And sometimes, it's just takes a little push.
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