Hoarding!! This is a word that is known all too well during this time of the Coronavirus. Who would have thought that we would be scrambling to find toilet paper?! If the virus situation wasn't so serious, this would almost be humorous. We've seen folks buying and hoarding more toilet paper than they could ever use in a year!! This hoarding phenomenon is not exclusive to the coronavirus pandemic. Before moving back to Florida, I lived in North Carolina for almost 20 years. Every time there was a serious threat of snow in the forecast, folks would converge on the supermarkets and wipe out every container of milk and every loaf of bread. It was almost like a plague of milk and bread consuming locusts was released on every supermarket, leaving behind bare shelves and empty refrigeration cases.
What triggers this hoarding mentality? Fear. The fear of “running out" of essentials. The irrational fear of our resources becoming depleted with no way to replenish. In the deepest recesses of our minds, we're thinking, “Without food and water, we will die!”
But there is a much greater concern that many are not thinking about, or even aware of. That concern is not having the spiritual food that allows us to live beyond this earth, beyond these physical bodies.
Jesus said, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” - John 6:35
Jesus goes on to say, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life.” John 6:47-48
And… “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” - John 6:51
We should understand that to "eat" this bread means to believe in Jesus. It means to receive Jesus into our life. Just as we take food and drink into our stomachs, so we take Christ into our hearts through faith. In doing so, we enter into a deeply personal relationship with Him.
Please don't confuse this with religion or “being religious.” Once someone is in right relationship to Jesus, he finds a satisfaction which is everlasting, not temporal. Jesus, The Bread of Life is eternal, and his Living Water means we will never thirst again! (see John 4:10-14). This is a promise from God!
No hoarding necessary!! We cannot exhaust or deplete the love and life that we have in Christ Jesus. We will live in Him, our Bread of Life, forever!!
Rey Garcia
Vero Bible Fellowship Elder Team