Snackish

 My daughter Olivia is funny.

She has never had a sweet tooth.

I would say she has a "savory" or salty tooth.

She loves snacks.

She liked cheez-its, croutons (yes! croutons! Think of it, they are kinda like mini-toasts and really salty), chips, pop corn, pretzels, and pita chips.

She loves snacks. Sometimes she would say to me "Mommy, I am kind of snack-ish right now" 

What does that mean?

I am not really hungry. I just want a little something. A little savory salty snack. 

Maybe this was in between meals?

No not really. Not for Olivia Grace. She could get snackish even 30 minutes after her meal. She just enjoys snacks.

In our life and walks with Jesus we are called to feast on His daily bread.

In the Old Testament, God (Yahweh) provided the mana from heaven. 

He abundantly and supernaturally supplied the means for them to stay alive. There was no CostCo, WalMart or local Sprouts in the Wilderness as they wandered. Bread was and still is a staple food. They needed bread or something similiar to live.

God provided manna which translates "what is it?"

I love this because our daily bread can be so unusual we can say the same thing today in 2025 to our LORD, what is this daily bread you provided for me today? I'll eat it LORD, but it sure is strange!!!

I am reading through the Gospel of John now in my One Year Bible plan. In fact, today's reading selection from May 19 blew my mind (2 Samuel 9- David shows kindness to Mephibosheth; Psalm 65- Beautiful encouragement from David; and then John 6:1-21 Jesus feeds the 5,000)

The people were listening intently to Jesus (See John 6:1-21) and Jesus asks the disciples "Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?"

The scripture clearly says that this was a probing question to test them.

I must confess. I do not always enjoy tests.

I failed my driver's permit test the 1st time (embarrassing, I thought it was easy and I studied but I failed)

I did horribly on my SAT test.

I failed one of the California tests required of lawyers (the MPRE) the first time I took it and had to re-take it. 

I was so stressed about the LSAT test I took one of those fancy over-priced prep courses and did not score well (I knew this was gonna happen!)

But by the grace of God (LITERALLY, by the grace of God and a lot of manic Bar prep) I passed the California Bar exam the first time- alll God (that is another story for another blog)

I am NOT a good test taker at all.

Unlike my brother Anthony who is a genius. He can pass a test without even studying the course "It's easy Laura. Just use logic and deductive reasoning" That works for you my brother, but not for me. I gotta study my tail off!

Back to Jesus and His loyal disciples.

This was a test and they did not get it.

They saw a miracle.

He fed everyone and there was left overs.

The best bread! The saltiest fish! The most savory delicious meal and where did Jesus get this from?
He is Creator God-Elohim- He created it! On the spot. He did a miracle.

God asks us. Where do you go when you are "snackish"?

Those vending machine snacks are horrible.

Famous Amos cookies? Yes

Cheetos? Yes

M & M's? Yes

Twinkies? Yes

Taki's? Yes

All of these snacks can be found in a vending machine. No prep time. No refrigerator needed. All you need is a bit of hunger (or boredom) and some money and voila! You will be filled.

True?

Actually, the correct answer is False.

These snacks do not fill us up.

My daughter Olivia would come to me on que and say "Mom. Thank you for the pretzels. But for some reason, I'm still hungry! I'm not full. Something is wrong with me Momma. I can't ever get full."

She is truly one remarkable daughter indeed.

Wise beyond her years.

The reason she is not getting full is that those snacks are actually designed to leave you unsatisfied. You can't eat one chip. Try it! I dare you. Or one M & M. They leave you wanting more. But sadly, these snacky-snacks are not real food, they are "snacks" filler foods, intended to satisfy a quick hunger pain but they are not equal to breakfast lunch or dinner.

God wants us to feast on Him. Feed on Him. Enjoy Him. Get your napkin ready, your water in place, because we are dining tonight! Even communion is a feast.

When we go to God's Word, we obtain all we need for life and Godliness. The problem? We want snacks! We want quick fix. Filler snacks. We want a quick salty or a quick sweet and that dumb hunger pain will all go away. But this is a lie from Satan.

Snacks can also be a symbol of sin.

If we are spending all night scrolling on social media, or watching TV and we never even think to pray, or read or meditate on God's goodness, we will end up feeling "snackish" in the morning. Then we are snackish tomorrow and the next day and the next.
We live a very unsatisfied life.

I love a musician named "Morrissey." On May 3 Olivia and I were all set to see him sing in concert. We had our t-shirts on, stub-hub tickets ready and we made the 1 hour drive to some weird venue to see my favorite singer.

We get there and I learned the venue is located within a casino. It was gross. There were bodies altered by plastic surgery, there were people eating and laughing at expensive restaurants, there were people sitting at bars watching sports games, and of course, the sights sounds and addiction of oppulent spending at the slot machines and poker tables. 

We run up to the venue and they say "Sorry. The concert is cancelled. Morrissey is in the hospital. The concert will be postponed to another date"

I could not believe it! I turned around trying so hard not to cry. I immediately feel the hot tears stream down my face. Poor Stephen Patrick Morrissey. He must be really ill! I cried silently looking at all the sights and sounds as we exited this casino that reaked of cigarettes.

I cried silently in the car too. 

But God taught me something really, really valuable. 
All of those people gambling, eating, getting drunk, staring at slot machines and giving their money to the "get rich quick" gods, all the idols in the building...God stirred my heart to pray not just for Morrissey but for everyone in that casino.

They were all "snackish." They wanted a little savory snack from the vending maching. I'll put in my quarters and voila! I'll have a snack and feel full.

"Mommy, Why don't I get full? Something really is wrong with me!"

All of those years watching my sweet girl eat her treats has taught me this valuable lesson.

The well of God's love is deep. The food on God's table is endless and it is REAL organic, natural, delicious food. Thanksgiving times ten. God is the author and finisher of our faith.

Taste and see that the LORD is good!

God does not design us to snack on the world and see that it is empty. 

The world's snacks do not satisfy us. They leave us actually feeling more hungry or worse! We get a stomach ache. 

When we sin, (and we do daily) we must repent and confess and go back to the Cross.

We need to go to God for our fulfillment. Not social media. Not a pay check. Not entertainment. Not TV. Not a fun vacation. Not coffee. Not a great work out at the gym. Not a 4.0 on our report card. Not a weight loss plan. Not even a new church.

These things are not inherently bad. They become bad when we make them little gods and we get all snacky over them.

We must feast on God's Word daily. His bread is bread indeed.

As Jesus said "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be filled."

Are you full?

Are you satisfied in life?

Only Christ and His Word can satisfy the ever so "snack" soul. Christ never leaves us longing for more like a craving for snacks. No. Christ does giving us a longing- but this craving is for more of Him. And more of Him always fills us up to the overflow!