But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4, ESV)
The military has an acronym for everything. Some even civilians are familiar with, others we learn only when we have someone close to us serving. MRE—Meal, Ready-to-Eat—was one that I became acquainted with only after our son enlisted.
MREs are self-contained field rations and are known to be a less-than-tasty necessity for any of serviceperson away from base. While these meals are nutritionally balanced, they aren’t something anyone would want to eat for an extended period. Even the military clearly states that they are only intended to be eaten for a maximum of 21 days.
Read More: Guideposts Military Outreach
While on leave, our son brought home several MREs for our family to see. His younger brothers thought they looked cool, but he was quick to explain how that type of prepackaged food wasn’t satisfying. “There’s just nothing like real food.”
When I was writing about that day in my journal, my son’s words kept repeating in my mind. That phrase led me to think about the way I was consuming spiritual nourishment. I realized that I’d gotten into the habit of reading books about God, and away from the time I used to spend reading words from God.
I had been existing on a spiritual version of MREs. I needed to get back to the real food of God’s living word—the Bible. I made some adjustments to my daily devotion time and got back to reading the Bible regularly. Now, no matter what, I make sure my daily spiritual diet always includes some real food. There’s nothing like it.
