Why People Starve to Death
Starvation is no laughing matter. Close to a billion people go hungry annually. Statistics say a child dies of hunger in our world every five seconds. Hunger is understood to be the most extreme form of poverty, as individuals or families cannot afford to meet their most basic need for food.
Our son Daniel has always been a picky eater. One night years ago when he was just a toddler he refused to eat even two bites of grilled chicken at suppertime. I remember this epic battle of parents versus child. My wife and I decided to go the distance. For more than 24 hours he refused to eat the two bites we continued to offer. No food, no water, no anything, he was determined. The battle ended with a grandmother who couldn’t stand to let him suffer any longer. She snuck him some food.
Over the years, as all of our children at times have displayed their own personal disdain for some of our offerings, I have learned several lessons that I believe can help us spiritually. I am reminded why people sometimes starve to death. This applies both to the physical realm as well as the spiritual:
1. The land is barren. When we hear about starvation in other countries we often hear that the reason is a lack of resources. These folks are living in a place where the land cannot satisfy their needs. The world of sin is similar with regard to spiritual starvation. People who live without God, the Bible, and the church are going to starve to death because they have not availed themselves to the resources that bring spiritual life. We need to continue to take the gospel to the whole world.
2. The food doesn’t taste good. Our son’s aversion to foods is partly genetic and partly by choice. He likes crackers, fries, bread, potatoes, pizza, some meats, and milk, to name a few. He doesn’t like virtually everything else. This is partly because he is too stubborn to try other things, and partly because he doesn’t like the way these other foods taste. Many people treat the Bible and preaching the same way. They don’t like the flavor of preaching that is challenging or that points out the reality of sin and hell. They don’t like to change. This causes them to miss out on the food that would enable them to achieve their best spiritual health.
3. They want something else. I can thank all three of our kids for this one. There is nothing more discouraging to my wife than when she spends time making a meal for our family and one of us frowns at what has been prepared. During the course of our epic battle with Daniel, I recall him literally pushing away the offered food and asking for or pointing to something else. That first night as he went to bed hungry he whined, “supper.” I said, “Are you ready to eat your chicken?” His one word reply was, “pudding!” Oh, he was hungry, but not hungry enough. Jesus charged those who followed after Him, “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him” (Jn. 6:27).
I hope that God will help all of us as parents to do what is best for ourselves and for our children. We certainly need His help. As for the problem of spiritual starvation, we all need to be educated better on how to take care of it. A healthy diet of godliness is within our grasp. It is simply a matter of choices.
“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” (Deuteronomy 8:3; Matthew 4:4)
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AUTHOR: Jeremiah Tatum
