The righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite, but the belly of the wicked suffers want. (Proverbs 13:25 ESV)
Appetite
Another example of how the Bible uses food to illustrate an important point. When I am hungry, I am often REALLY hungry. And when that occurs I gobble all the food I can see… regardless of need, healthiness, or generosity.
But when I am content, I find it easier to eat purposefully, gratefully, and thoughtfully.
Contentedness, whether regarding my stomach, my checkbook, or my self-worth, enables me to be more righteous in my consumptions. But discontent, coming from self-focus, greed, and too much self-awareness, pushes me towards injustice, me-ism, and wastefulness.
My appetite displays who I really am.
And I can compare myself to Christ while on earth. He ate, as we see often in the gospels… but He ate to God’s glory, not His own gratification. As a human, He had appetite… but His appetite gave way before the Spirit of God when He went to meditate in the desert. His appetite could have driven Him to selfish consumption… but He divided fish and bread, shared meals with the disciples, and did not aim at accumulation.
May my appetite be more towards righteousness, and less towards my full belly. Checkbook, and friendlist.