Are you feasting or starving in lockdown?
Are you struggling to ‘swallow’ your circumstances?
Are you spiritually satisfied?
Are you hungering for more?
A call to radical faith in Jesus.
An innovative guide to feasting on God in all situations.
‘A daring, dangerous, exciting adventure.’
Simon Guillebaud, founder of Great Lakes Outreach, Burundi
The crisis around Covid-19 has led to circumstances in people’s lives which vary greatly. While for some the pandemic is proving to be an opportunity to slow down, have family time and reflect, for others it is a period of increased busyness or ill health, perhaps loss of income and employment or, worst of all, the deaths of loved ones.
What happens to our faith when life serves us circumstantial ‘dishes’ that are bitter, sour, unpalatable and unwelcome? How do we feast when we don’t like the menu? Are we just fair-weather Jesus followers? How can we mature and discover the delights of truly ‘feasting’ with Jesus when times are hard as well as when they are easy?
Author of Spiritual Feasting, Jenny Sanders, says, ‘That can only happen when we are more taken up with Him than with what’s in front of us, without becoming inauthentic, and are equipped to resist the enemies who seek to lure us away from that “table”.’
The idea of choosing to ‘feast’ at the table set before us, as described in Psalm 23, ‘in the presence of our enemies’, had been with Jenny Saunders for twenty years. The psalm pictures the Father preparing a table where we can feast in intimacy with Him, victorious before those who war against us. Spiritual Feasting encourages us to take our assigned places, to enjoy spiritual nourishment and to engage with the Holy Spirit as we eat.
Jenny says, ‘I was recently diagnosed with breast cancer; then came the Covid-19 crisis, both “dishes” I could really have done without. I can push the “plates” away in disgust or I can dare to believe that God has provided me with another opportunity to lean into His faithfulness and pursue intimacy with Him.’
Commenting on Spiritual Feasting, Simon Guillebaud, founder of Great Lakes Outreach, Burundi, says: ‘When it feels as though the world is unravelling around us, marching to the beat of another Kingdom’s drum becomes increasingly crucial. We need to press into authentic relationship with Jesus through every circumstance life throws at us. How else will we see His Kingdom come?’
The exquisite privilege of dining with Jesus can turn even a bitter ‘dish’ into a feast. So if you recognise that Jesus never promised a trouble-free life, but want to experience the reality of living life to the full with Him, then pick up your spiritual knife and fork and tuck in – it’s time to stop snacking and to start feasting!
Spiritual Feasting by Jenny Sanders (ISBN: 9781912726226) is published by Instant Apostle and is available on 15th May 2020 from Christian bookshops, bookstores and online retailers. Non-fiction, 288pp, £8.99.