Jonathan Munson, Executive Director
“’The days are coming,’ declares the Sovereign Lord, ‘when I’ll send a famine in the land–not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the Words of the Lord.’” Amos 8:11
“Feast or famine” is a common phrase in the business world that describes seasons of extreme highs and lows. One month, business is booming, and new opportunities are pouring in. A month later, orders dry up, no one answers your calls, and you wonder if you’ll be able to keep the lights on.
Long before anyone used the phrase in business, Amos warned the people of something much more serious than a bad P&L statement– a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.
For generations, the Israelites ignored the prophets who urged them to return to God. Slowly but surely, their hearts grew apathetic to His voice. Eventually, it was as if the Lord said, “Because you refuse to listen, I’ll stop speaking.” Israel had faced food shortages before, but this famine wouldn’t leave people with empty stomachs; it would leave them with empty souls.
And the parallels to today are hard to miss.
In many ways, our souls are starving–not because God has stopped speaking, but because we’re feeding on the wrong things. We devour an endless buffet of information, social media, and entertainment, and yet much of it leaves us empty and unsatisfied. Could it be that we’re feasting on the world while barely opening the Word?
The irony is that most of us don’t lack access to a Bible. Quite the opposite. We’re surrounded by countless translations, study tools, Christian books, digital resources, devotionals, and sermons from gifted communicators. There is plenty of ‘food’ available. Yet, biblical illiteracy is rising, even among those of us who call ourselves Christ-followers.
It doesn’t make any sense.
We have access to a feast yet choose to live in a kind of self-imposed famine. The real famine today isn’t a lack of hearing God’s Word; it’s a lack of hunger for it. Somewhere along the way, we’ve lost our appetite. We’ve convinced ourselves that we can live the Christian life without a steady diet of Scripture. Maybe we don’t fully believe Jesus’ words, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4).
If God’s people once suffered because they neglected His voice, what happens when we do the same?
Faith decreases. Anxiety increases. Truth becomes relative. Our hearts drift towards the things of this world. (And these are just some of the things that can go wrong.) Ultimately, we become like the people in Amos’ day, “staggering” and “wandering” around (Amos 8:12) like a dog roaming the streets in search of food.
Perhaps Amos’ warning is exactly the wake-up call we need today.
JC Ryle once wrote, “Happy is that man who possesses a Bible! Happier still is he who reads it! Happiest of all is he who not only reads it, but obeys it, and makes it the rule of his faith and practice!”
God has not left us in a famine. He’s given us the Bible so we can enjoy a soul-enriching, life-giving feast within its pages. Feasting is cherishing the Word, meditating on it, praying through it, and obeying it in daily life. It’s centering our lives on the Word of God, so we can know the God of the Word.
But if you’re not ready for a feast yet, start small. Scale back the time you spend scrolling your screen and open your Bible. Read a few verses. Digest them. Ask the Lord to help you understand how to apply the passage to your life. Remember, you’re not just reading words–you’re being fed by the Living God.
And nothing else can nourish our souls like His Word.
The table is set. The food is ready.
Will you feast…or settle for famine?
“Lord, decrease my hunger for the world and increase my hunger for the Word. Amen.”
DIG DEEPER
Read “When God Is Silent” taken from a sermon by George Wright
