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We Are Starving For God

February 5, 2013

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Recently the Super Bowl was played.

I am not much of a sports fan and I usually do not watch events like this. To be honest it reminds me of the Roman Gladiator games of ancient Rome.

There was a famous ideal that was promoted by the Caesar and the Senate of Rome.

That being ” Bread and Circuses” or “Bread and Games.”

Bread and Games is a metaphor for a superficial means of appeasement.

In the case of politics, the phrase is used to describe the creation of public approval, not through exemplary or excellent public service or public policy, but through diversion; distraction; or the mere satisfaction of the immediate, shallow requirements of a populace, as an offered “palliative.”

The phrase also implies the erosion or ignorance of civic duty amongst the concerns of the common man. (1)

Common man is no longer worried about what is going on in the world around him. He is more worried about his pizza and beer along with Monday Night Football, baseball, basketball, etc.

Drudge Report reported that the 2013 Super Bowl was “the most watched event in history.”

Now if you are someone who watched this and maybe had a Super Bowl party, I am not trying to pick on you or anything like that.

I just find it interesting when compared to other things of importance.

To magnify the “bread and games” idea, companies pay top dollar so that they can air their commercial for a product or service during the Super Bowl. The 2013 Super Bowl was no different with the average cost of a 30-second advertisement costing around $4 million.

These commercials have made companies into mega giants today.

Out of all the contenders this 2013, one commercial stood out. This was a commercial by Dodge Truck.

The title of this commercial was “God Made a Farmer” and is actually a commentary piece by the late Paul Harvey.

If you have not seen this commercial, here is the link — http://youtu.be/sillEgUHGC4

It is a very touching commercial.

It sounds like Paul Harvey was in an auditorium speaking to a group a people.

The sound of the speech really reminded me of the old tent revivals.

Facebook posts were coming in on how many people loved the commercial. Some said it was the best they saw. But some made reference to God and how it touched them personally.

Wow… just talking about God in a TV commercial touches the hearts of people.

Now please know that again I am not picking on anyone here, I am making an observation. In fact it really hit me last night how profound this observation was.

What hit me was that a mere commercial that just mentions God impacted people.

I am not saying that this is a bad thing at all.

But what God really impressed upon me while I was reading all the Facebook posts about this commercial is this observation, that being…

“We are starving for God.”

God plays such a small part in our lives today.

We are to busy running here and running there. We have all these great “time saving” devices that are suppose to help us, and they do. But what we do is just cram more “stuff” into our lives so that we are running faster and faster, to and fro, cramming every little thing into our lives taking up ever minute.

Is it any wonder why we have no time for God?

Is it any wonder that our spirits are so starved and deprived that just a speck of God from a Dodge Truck commercial touches our hearts?

It reminds me of a person so parched from walking in the desert that when they finally find a small mud puddle of water; they run to it and fall flat with their face in the water, drinking all they can.

But the puddle is so small, and just wets the lips giving a little bit of relief from the thirst. In just 60 seconds the water is lapped up and it is no more.

Then there is a brief realization that the water is gone. The person feels a moment of remorse and slowly picks himself up off the ground to continue his walk to where ever.

That was the picture that went through my head after I watched this commercial.

See, I enjoyed the commercial also. For 60 seconds my heart was filled with a positive thought and my spirit rejoiced just referencing God the Father.

Then the commercial was over.

A voice inside me pitifully says “Just one more morsel PLEASE!

My spirit wanted more of anything about God.

It was at that moment that I realized just how vexed and starving for God we are.

I shows me how much we lack real honest to goodness fellowship with God.

The enemy has done an outstanding job to nullify and demoralize Christians today. Now more than ever we are strangers in a strange land with a vexing of our spirit growing daily.

Our spirits hunger for the Lord.

I am reminded of the verse in Psalms that talks about the deer that pants for the water in the brook…

Psalm 42: 1-2a As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. 2a My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God:…

But here is a wonderful promise from our Lord…

Matthew 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

By Ray Gano