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The End of Famine

by Jerry Ousley  
7/18/2014 / Christian Living

There's an old cartoon starring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy that retells the story of Jack in the Beanstalk. I love those old classic cartoons, I suppose because they are what I grew up on. Most modern cartoons have very good lessons in them for children and I guess they stimulate the imagination but to me, they just don't replace those "oldie-goldies." Anyway, because the giant had stolen the magic harp the land had entered a horrible period of depression and famine. The trio had come down to cutting beans into three pieces in order to survive.

That's when they made the decision to sell their cow, "Old Bossy." Mickey took their cow to the market while Donald and Goofy celebrated. They sang a song as they danced around the room, and I couldn't tell you all the words to it but the last line went something like, "I'm gonna eat, and eat, and eat, and eat, and eat until I die!"

Of course, true to the original tale, Mickey returned with a handful of beans supposedly magic beans, and you know the rest of the story and perhaps you know the particular version I'm referring to. In the end they returned with the Magic Harp and all was restored and the famine came to an end.

The spiritual famine we've been talking about can also come to an end. As we said, it must begin in us. As we allow God to become more than just the One we stand in awe of, as we learn that the name "Father" when applied to God means more than simply an authority figure and allow Him to become our personal Father who loves us, provides for us, nourishes us, protects us, and blesses us, then we can experience restoration in our lives.

As we are restored, then we can't help but let that bleed out in our conversations. People will notice the change in us. They will see the positive attitude that comes from knowing we have been with Jesus. They will wonder how we are blessed even if we live in poverty. They will be amazed and want what we have found. What an opened door is then exposed to us! We will be given opportunities to witness for our Lord and Savior like never before. As we share what we have come to know others will be changed as well, and the famine of the Church will also begin to change.

What the palmer worm as knawed away, the damage the swarming locust has caused, what the canker worm has licked up, and what the caterpillar has devoured, will be restored not only in us but in all who yield to our testimony.

The spiritual famine, at least for us and those we have touched, will come to an end. We will be free to worship God as Jesus said we must worship "In spirit and in truth" (John 4:23). We can sing and dance before Him in our spirits and rejoice in the salvation of the Lord.

This doesn't mean that everything will automatically transfer us into "La la Land." In the cartoon it happened that way, but we know in real life that isn't how it is. We still face problems. Giants continue to loom before us. Those things will not change.

What does change is how we handled those problems. Just as Paul and Silas sang praises to God at midnight, even though their backs were still bleeding from the beatings they had received, even though they were locked away in a small, dirty jail cell, and even though their hands and feet were fast secured in the stocks, they were able to sing to God. Despite our troubles, our worries, our concerns, and our problems, as believer's we can stand up to those giants and rejoice in the Lord. We can see past our circumstances and know that even in poverty we are rich. It may not get our homes back. It may continue to be a struggle to work and make a living. But one thing is sure: The famine is over and no thief, no robber, no one can take our most valuable riches from us. We have been with Jesus and in Him there is no famine.

Jerry D. Ousley is the author of ?Soul Challenge?, ?Soul Journey?, ?Ordeal?, ?The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional and his first novel ?The Shoe Tree.? Visit our website at spiritbread.com to download these and more completely free of charge.

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