Shalom my Friends, I would like to share with you some questions that my Dad asked during a family meeting. It caused an interesting point to be brought up, after much discussion.

He asked us, “What are three of the most common reasons people do any thing?”

We thought about it, and came up with two of them.

One: because they want to do something. Such as when someone wants to play a game, or when someone wants to do something nice for their friend.

Two: because they have to do something. Like people have to work to pay their bills and expenses, or children have to learn their ABC’s before they can read.

We couldn’t think of the third reason, so he told us about it. “The Third reason,” he said “is when initially they want to do something. But over time they don’t want to do it anymore.”

As it might be with some people who start smoking. They wanted it in the beginning, yet over time it became something they no longer desired to do. But they “couldn’t” stop because it had turned into an uncontrollable habit. Or maybe some people have started a job they liked, yet found things out while working that made them want to quit. But they weren’t able to because they couldn’t find another job to support them. Both people now “have to do” something they no longer want to.

(I hope and pray that you are able to understand what I have written so far. It is very hard to condense our long debate into this article. And it only gets more complicated. So please be patient with me and my fumbled words.)

Then my Dad asked us, “Is food something you want or is it something you have to have?”

We said that food is something that we want and have to have. Everyone likes food, and everyone needs food to stay alive.

“So,” my Dad said “what would people do if they had no food and were very hungry, but they had no transportation and no money. What would they do to get what they want and have to have?”

Each one of us took turns answering and came up with the following:

They might walk miles and miles for food. Do hard work for a little bit of food. Beg for food. They might even go as far as to go to jail to get food! All are quite desperate measures to take.

He then asked us, “Well, what about people with uncontrollable habits? What would someone do if they no longer had any alcohol or cigarettes?”

We figured that they might also walk or drive many miles, beg, and be willing to pay high prices for their habit. “So after all this discussion,” Dad continued,” do you think we can say, that if someone wants to do or have something badly enough, they will try almost anything to get what they want? And that the same goes for those who have to have something?” We all agreed that he was right.

But Dad surprised us with his next question. He asked, “Now would you do all of those desperate things if you didn’t have a Bible? Would you walk many miles, beg at people’s doors, or pay lots of money just to get one Bible? Would you be able to do it with the same passion as you would for the earthly things? The Bible is our spirit’s food.

Without His Word and His Truth, our spirit can starve to death!” (Deuteronomy 8:3 and Matthew 4:4)

Then we took time to answer the questions. (Please take time to answer them for yourself.) Unfortunately we weren’t sure if we could do all those desperate things, and so we discussed why that might be.

We can strongly feel the need for food and even have a fear of what will happen if we don’t have it. But we of- ten don’t even notice our spirit’s hunger pains. Because man is sinful, we aren’t as connected with our spirit as we are with our earthly bodies, even though our spirit is the more important part of us. Adonai, our King, our God, is the only one who can supply our spirit’s needs. He gave us His word to read (eat) and study( digest). That way we can be closer to Him and His everlasting love.

Are you starving your spirit? One of the best ways to learn anything is to ask lots of questions and search for an- swers. What is the spirit’s purpose? What are it’s needs? What happens after you die? How can you be sure?

Do you know the answers to these?

“Ask, and it will be given to you; Seek and you will find; Knock, and it will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7

May the King of Heaven bless you in your walk with Him.