This morning I woke up wishing that my art class was starting next week instead of this one, because I was SO sleepy! I tried to talk myself into missing the first class, but I wasn't buying it. So I got up and got myself there on time....with breakfast and coffee I might add! I walked in and found no mass chaos....and no people....the light was on, but no one was around! My class DOES start next week!
I guess I thought the week of the 7th meant the 6th--duh! two days in a row!

I used the time though....I went to Starbucks and studied my Bible for what I imagined was an hour and a half....turned out that it was more like 3 and a half hours! I am studying on food, so there you go! Today I read the passage in Daniel about Daniel and his friends refusing to be tempted by the king's food--refusing to defile himself....and asking to be allowed to eat vegetables and water. He was healthier than the other young men who DID eat from the king's table, AND he did not defile himself.

Then I read the passage in John about Jesus being the bread of life. What I personally gained from reading these two passages was that I want to carefully consider what I am eating and not mindlessly put food into my mouth. This has been a recurring theme in all of the scriptures I have been reading this week. I am just going through the concordance and looking up scriptures on gluttony, food, eating etc. I have already realized that one of my major problems is that I usually just eat without being thoughtful unless I am committed to change, which I haven't been until now....for quite some time. Another thing I realized is that as the result of being overweight all of my life and being on diets from a young age, I often wonder what I am missing....and that gets me off track. Daniel did not wonder what he was missing refusing the delicacies of the king's table. He knew he was refusing to be defiled by what he put into his mouth.

The food that will satisfy is the Word of God, which is what Jesus was saying. He is the bread of life. If I eat his body and drink his blood, I will no longer hunger or thirst, because I am being fed spiritually. Spiritual hunger is a hole in my soul sometimes I think. I have been trying to fill it up whenever I have been neglecting my spiritual needs.

After my Bible study, I visited the art galleries and talked to some artists, which was unbelievably inspiring as it always is. Then I drove over the bridge to Bolling AFB to get groceries. Before I went to the grocery store, I walked along the river remembering when I used to do that when we lived on the base for 9 years. My boys grew up doing "park walks" with me and Don on the base. The parks and the housing are much nicer now, but I still hear the voices of my children speaking to the heart of my memory....great times. I am thankful for them. I am grateful for the day today and glad I got up early for it. God is good!