Too Worried About Lunch

# 495 - Today's Du-votional comes from: Mr 8:15-17, “Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod." And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread." But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive nor understand? Is your heart still hardened?”

Jesus and the disciples had hopped into the boat again and headed to the less populous east side of the Sea of Galilee. There would be no place to buy bread and they forgot to bring enough with them. They were anxious about what they would eat.

Jesus' statement about the leaven of the Pharisees and the Herodians was designed to get them thinking about a much worse problem.... the problem of false teaching. But they missed it completely because they were worried about lunch. Somehow they misconstrued His words into something like this. “ if you guys would be as smart as the Pharisees, you'd have remembered to bring bread.”

It's amazing the effect a growling tummy (or other worries about material things) can have on our concerns about what really matters. The disciples fixation on earthly things brought out the charge from Jesus that their hearts were still hardened, and here's the thing about a hardened heart: It cannot fully receive the things of God. I pray we can all make that connection and let go of our earthly concerns to more fully set our minds on things above.

Father, we are so weak in this area, so quick to panic when are temporal props are taken away, forgive us and help us to remember that if we seek You first and Your Kingdom of righteousness, these other things will be added to us. In Jesus name, Amen.