The Craving
Blog by Sandy Hopkins
Have you ever had a taste for something – your favorite food and you just had to have it? Nothing else will do – it has to be that one thing exactly the way you like it? And then after weeks or months of craving this particular food you finally get to eat it and it’s wonderful. But then just a few days later you’re craving it again!
Maybe it’s an Auntie Anne’s cinnamon sugar pretzel, or PF Chang’s Mongolian Beef, or that fried chicken you only get when you go home. And that food you have a taste for – if it’s within your power to get it, you’ll do whatever it takes to hunt it down. Where there’s a will there’s a way – right?!
What if we were that way about hearing from God? What if we craved for God’s Word? Is that even possible? The Bible tells us it is…
CRAVE (definition)
1. to long for; want greatly; desire eagerly:
Psalms 119:131 TPT
“I open my mouth and inhale the word of God because I crave the revelation of your commands.”
1 Peter 2:2 TPT
“In the same way that nursing infants cry for milk, you must intensely crave the pure spiritual milk of God’s Word. For this “milk” will cause you to grow into maturity, fully nourished and strong for life—”
Luke 1:53 TPT
“Those who hunger for him will always be filled, but the smug and self-satisfied he will send away empty.”
The more I know God – the more I want to know Him more. The more I am in His presence – the more I want to be in His presence. The more He speaks to me – the more I want to hear Him. The more He uses me – the more I want to be used by Him. The more revelation I get through His Word – the more I want to read His Word.
What if the “object of our affection” were to be in His presence? What if we focused our attention on seeking Him? Have you ever read, re-read and mulled over a verse or chapter in the Bible for weeks? God has a way of showing you things you never saw in the scriptures before.
I believe with all my heart that if we feed ourselves on the Word of God, we start to crave time in the Word of God. And the more time we spend in the Word of God, the more we crave His presence.
Jeremiah 29:13-14 MSG
““When you come looking for me, you’ll find me. “Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.” GOD’s Decree. “I’ll turn things around for you. I’ll bring you back from all the countries into which I drove you”— GOD’s Decree—“bring you home to the place from which I sent you off into exile. You can count on it.”
Whether it’s a conference, a retreat, a fast or your daily quiet time – spending time seeking God is never something you’ll be sorry you did. Hearing from God, getting a new perspective on something or even getting some positive input can be the catalyst to unlocking something new for you.
I have a motto in life (I think they call them “memes” these days) – live your life with no regrets. As a Jesus loving, Bible believing Christian, I want to become more like Jesus and bring as many people to heaven with me as I can. And the more God uses me, the deeper my conviction. I cannot unsee what I have seen. The lyrics of this song echo in my heart regularly…
Now I know
I have seen
The glory that cannot be unseen
I am changed
Changing still
As I look upon the Lord & believe
Holy is the Lord revealed before my eyes
And my burning heart can scarcely take it in
As I behold your beauty with unworthy eyes
The only song my soul can find to sing
Is Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah my King
[Transfiguration by Hillsong]
Selah…