Message: Our appetites can be so strong in the moment, but we have to keep them in check. An unchecked appetite can take on such a powerful influence that we give it an improper priority in our lives. This can cause us to devalue other important things because in the moment of our emotionally driven state, we rationalize the priority. Esau sold his birthright to his brother Jacob for a bowl of stew. He was hungry and emotional and he rationalized in the moment that a birthright wouldn’t do much good for him if he died of hunger. I don’t know how long he had been out hunting and missed meals, but as dramatic as that sounds, we have been just as foolish, if not worse in moments of strong appetite.
Command: Keep my appetites in check.
Promise: God has promised a lot of blessings to us as a reward to us for a life of surrender and obedience. The bible is full of promises!
Warning: If I allow emotional appetites to run rampant in my life, I risk forfeiting the bigger blessings that God had otherwise intended for me.
Application: Lord Jesus, please help me to keep my appetites in check! Help me to manage my emotions and deal with daily needs consistently so they don’t become unmanageable and overtake my life. Show me the smaller things that I tend to ignore on a daily basis that have the potential to get out of control. Grief, stress, offenses, impulsive shopping, impulsive eating, impulsive outbursts of emotions, procrastination. Help me to realize that any of these unchecked things can cause me to sacrifice my influence or my purpose.
