FEAST:
-noun
| 1. | any rich or abundant meal: The steak dinner was a feast. |
| 2. | a sumptuous entertainment or meal for many guests: a wedding feast. |
| 3. | something highly agreeable: The Rembrandt exhibition was a feast for the eyes. |
| 4. | a periodical celebration or time of celebration, usually of a religious nature, commemorating an event, person, etc |
-verb
| 5. | to have or partake of a feast; eat sumptuously. |
| 6. | to dwell with gratification or delight, as on a picture or view. |
I’d ask you when the last time you feasted was, but I’m assuming it was Thanksgiving. In fact, I’d say that Thanksgiving is about the best example we have in America today as a day of feasting. I don’t know about you, but I gained quite a bit of weight from that day and I earned every pound of it. In fact, as a friend of mine would say, I even was training for it the previous week at deer camp!! Regardless, Thanksgiving day is known as a feast of food and thankfulness…
One of the first thoughts anyone has about heaven (at least in my mind) has something to do with the wedding feast prepared for us. I’d say most people aren’t really sure what they think about the whole bride and groom deal so they avoid that. Likewise, I’d venture to say that most people aren’t really sure what happens after that so they really don’t dwell too much on that either. The one thing we do know and understand though is a feast!!!
Or do we?
When you think of a feast, do you merely think of an abundance of the most savory food you can find? So much so that if you had an appetite that couldn’t be quenched you’d still seemingly never run out of food? It seems as though we won’t need food in heaven and yet God must enjoy it because that’s one of the first things we will be doing. However, I believe it goes much further than that. I believe that we will be feasting with every one of our senses and maybe with some more that we don’t even have now! I believe that that we feast with our eyes the absolute splendor of His majesty and His creation. I believe we will feast with our nose aromas so intoxicating that we feel like we’re just falling deeper into them. I believe that we will feast with our touch and the textures we’ll feel will wrap us up in a delight we’ve never known. I believe we’ll feast on voices and choirs of lights and angels so pure you can almost touch the sound emanating from them. Of course, I also believe we will feast on food that is too savory for words and melts our being…However, even above all that is the voice of a beloved calling us alone and whispering a new name that provides a fullness to our being that none of the other feasting can accomplish alone…when was the last time you let your imagination go when thinking of His splendor?
Recently I read a book called “The Heavenly Man” by Paul Hattaway about the life of Brother Yun…so far! If you are reading this blog right now I want to tell you that I DESIRE WHOLE-HEARTEDLY for you to read this book- even more so, to consume this book.
There are many Christian books out there that talk about ideals and values. There are many that talk about disciplines and virtues. More yet talk about warfare and surrender. You won’t have to look far to find guides for living, eating, maturing, discipling, growing, relating, listening, reading and everything else in between. I’m not much of a reader but I have read a few and most of them are actually pretty good. However, most of them also primarily focus on your head knowledge and understanding of subjects that first and foremost need to be addressed by the heart.
I’ve longed for examples of people who lived the way I’ve always believed we could…I have yearned for examples of men and women of God who were empowered with a compassion and gentleness yet firm with conviction and a love so steady that heaven and earth seem to shake with their whisper. I’ve longed for examples of how God does the most extraordinary things through the most ordinary of people. For those of you who have even an ounce of desire to know about this God character and what He is really like…furthermore what Jesus was like…then I urge you to read this book!!
Ghandi once said that he would have become a Christian if he had ever met one that actually followed Christ (basic paraphrase.) I believe that Ghandi would have been shaken by the example set before us by Brother Yun!
I found myself eating of this book more than reading of it. The bible makes references that “man does not live by bread alone, but by every word from the Father” and that “I (Jesus) am the bread of life…” However, as much as I’ve read the bible (and even read it with depth of mind and heart) I’ve never been good at eating it. I’ve “consumed” large portions before but still that was different. I found myself feeding off of the words of His life while simultaneously gaining a greater hunger for God’s word.
I’ve read of stories in the bible and known they were more than just stories, but some of them just seem so hard to truly connect with. Do I really know what it was like to be like one of David’s mighty men who would take out armies single-handedly? Nah, not really…That’s really SWEET!!! Yet, I’ve always been somewhat detached looking in from the outside on these stories…I found that reading through the life of Brother Yun started to bridge the gap of what was possible through the power of Christ. Needless to say I believe this book will make you yearn for something more and I highly recommend reading it!
Ironically, much of Brother Yun’s feasting came while fasting…go figure eh?
