Pockets

by Eli Fisher

How often have you opened your refrigerator and discovered a long-forgotten bowl of leftovers? In our house we jokingly call such lapses “science projects.” But in reality there’s really nothing funny about it. It’s been estimated that well over one-fourth of the food that we buy in this country ends up in the trash bin.

Beyond the exorbitant (and sinful) waste of food lies an even deeper theological issue. I often wonder what the spiritual cost is of never having to worry where one’s next meal is coming from. In this era of increasing industrialization and technology, we often give a quick “Thanks for the grub, God,” without a thought to the actual source of our food. It seems amazing to me that barely a century ago the majority of people in the U.S. still lived on farms. In contrast, today most of us don’t know where the food that we’re preparing comes from and don’t give a thought to the hours of work it represents. We’ve grown so used to having meat and fruit and vegetables year-round that we take our food for granted. We’ve lost the basic gratitude to our Creator and that sense of awe that sitting down to a meal once evoked.

How do we regain that sense of wonder and instill it in our children? One way is to become more intentional about communing with nature. Perhaps the easiest step is, if possible, to plant a garden to grow vegetables, fruit, and herbs to include in your meals. Include your children in all the stages, from planning the garden to harvesting the “crops.” (If no space is available for a garden, consider growing vegetables and herbs in pots.)

In addition, you can do things to teach your children about other wonders of creation. Plan outings to the park or to a nature preserve; while there, identify as many species of birds or as many different trees or plants as you can. Start a rock collection; put a birdfeeder in your yard. Don’t cancel your outings if it’s raining, and plan outings for all seasons so that your children will become aware of the miracles of the changing seasons.

A second way to recapture this sense of wonder is to become aware of how the people of the Bible so easily associated the goodness of the earth with God’s acts of salvation. Remember that the Israelites celebrated how God had freed them from slavery and brought them to a “land flowing with milk and honey.” Study passages such as Deuteronomy 26:1-15, Psalm 67, and Amos 9:13-15, which illustrate how these two concepts go hand-in-hand.

Discuss with your children how the Bible teaches us that the very food we eat, as well as all the wonders of creation, result from God’s love, God’s justice, and God’s acts of salvation. If you are able to raise food of any sort, make sure that you “tithe” it in some way and give it to our modern counterparts of the “priests, widows, orphans, and aliens.” Or volunteer time in a soup kitchen or some other project, and include your children if possible.

Perhaps the best way to recapture the sense of wonder of God’s creation is to recall the most meaningful meals in the Bible: the Passover supper and the Last Supper. Study these accounts carefully, and contemplate their meaning. Resolve to make mealtimes in your household special times, family times, when everyone sits down together with no interruptions. Turn off the radios, TVs, stereos, cell phones, and all other distractions. Those things will wait. Make sure that your prayers of blessings don’t become stale, trite, or rote and that they include thanks for all aspects of your lives, not just your meals.

Eli Fisher is Managing  Editor of Alive Now magazine, published by The Upper Room.