Come hungry, y'all...

Hey everybody…
 
How hungry are you? I mean, right now. I’m heading out to dinner shortly. But also, how about Sunday? Do you plan to come to church hungry? Sure… we’ll have a really neat lunch after church (details below). But I’m not talking about that. I mean are you really, really hungry? Like starvation and dehydration level hungry. No? You’re not? Why not? Shouldn’t we be? Let’s talk in Deeper Thoughts below.
 
But first…
 
·      HUGE Summer Kick Off extravaganza—food, fellowship, games, relay races, and more. THIS Sunday, June 8, right after church. We will feed you—no need to bring anything. Hot dogs, brats, watermelon, chips, popcorn, veggies, fresh squeezed lemonade, Kona Ice, and more!!
o   We have tons of ways to be involved: Play games, get to know people, volunteer to help out!
 
·      Teens:  NO Youth Group this Sunday, as we’ll join in the Summer Kick Off festivities. But… Did you know that God is working in amazing ways in our youth group? There is a lot of growth happening, not only in numbers, but much more importantly in depth and passion for the Lord. To get involved, email Jessica Sauder: [email protected].
 
·      Remember not to miss “The Daily Six” videos as we continue our teaching series called “Knowing God.” Join me for six minutes each morning, Monday through Friday, on our YouTube channel as we study through the entire Old Testament together. If you’d like to receive daily email reminders and you’re not already getting them, click here to sign up!
 
·      Our summertime event schedule will stay a little lighter as folks enjoy vacations and such. Big things are ahead, to include Mt. Hope’s 190th Anniversary celebration August 24! More details to come!
 
OK…that’s it today for you email skimmers and you who are stuffed to the gills… BUT…
 
Some Deeper Thoughts…
 
I think you should come to church absolutely starving. And I don’t mean for the hot dogs.
 
Yes, please have a little appetite in you Sunday morning so you’ll want to stick around and enjoy the rich connections, friendship, fellowship, and getting to know your church family better. But you know the drill on that, don’t you? You’ll eat our spectacular Summer Kick Off luncheon, and then by 6:00 p.m. it’ll be as if you never ate.
 
But if you come starving for something else, you can go home on Sunday completely satisfied. And, with just the right dietary plan, you can stay satisfied.
 
God promised so.
 
Oh… and did I mention that it won’t cost you a penny?
 
Isaiah 55:1 (God speaking): “Come, all you who are thirsty, comer to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come buy wine and milk without money and without cost.”
 
Of course, you know what God is talking about here, don’t you? He is not talking about your grocery bill (notice He did not mention cheap eggs). No, God is talking about the satisfaction of your soul.
 
“Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare” (Isaiah 55:2).
 
It doesn’t take much imagination to recognize that we spend a lot of money, time, and energy on activities that drain us rather than fill us. Our souls wither in the heat of all our busyness, pressures, stress, expectations, responsibilities. And traffic. Did I mention traffic?
 
So, most people--even many Christians—find themselves plowing through life just surviving, choked with weariness and burdens that often far outweigh the fun and joy. Spiritual enthusiasm is not commonplace; spiritual vibrancy is rare. Our connection to God can be somewhat distant; perhaps for some, even strained.
 
But you get the point of God’s revelation in Isaiah 55, don’t you? God is promising a satisfaction and enthusiastic joy that far outweighs anything the world has to offer. Tragically, far too few people access this promise.
 
I think our lack of hunger is our primary problem.
 
When the world does indeed satisfy a measure of our hunger—we have a certain level of abundance in our lifestyle, possessions, status, career, and such—we might not even recognize how spiritually hungry we are. It’s like when I eat an entire bag of Chips Ahoy cookies in one afternoon (I actually did that once during the Covid lock down; please don’t judge), I will miss my real need for a robust and healthy dinner. I may think I’ve been satisfied. But I’m not. I might not even realize the fading energy that follows is my blood sugar crashing. A healthy meal would fix it, but I’ll probably rather just collapse on the couch and be miserable.
 
Friends, when we miss the real source of joy and abundance because we are so busy with what we think is joy and abundance, our souls go unsatisfied. And God begs us to come to dinner with Him.
 
“Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near,” God says (Isaiah 55:6). Come to dinner. Come hungry. Buy from Him. His dinner is amazing.
 
And when we do, we “will go out in joy and be led forth in peace” (Isaiah 55:12). Anyone hungry for real joy and peace?  “The mountains and the hills will burst into song before you,” he goes on. Life can be so abundant that it seems like even the granite around us is dancing and singing.
 
But to find this, we have to seek for God. To want to seek for God, we have to be hungry. Hungry enough to go looking for dinner.
 
May I challenge us to come to church this Sunday really hungry? We’ll solve your calorie desires right after church. But beforehand, how about your spiritual hunger? Shall we seek for the Lord with everything we have?
 
Come hungry, y’all. God can’t wait to feed you!! Read all of Isaiah 55 before you come. See if you might want to buy His dinner. It is really, really, tasty.
 
Much love…
 
Chris Eads
Mt. Hope Pastor
Friend