Casandra Martin

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” – Matthew 5:6

Have you ever had a craving? A craving is more than a passing whim. It is a deep desire. It is a hunger that pulls at our eyes, crawls into our minds, and demands our attention. It is persistent in its call and tenacious in its ability to change our direction and refocus our vision. We will go out of our way to satisfy a craving. We will go the extra distance, pay the extra cost, or give the extra time in order to answer the call of a craving.

Not all cravings are bad. In fact, a craving can reveal a deep need, provide the answer for a significant struggle, or be the remedy for something that is broken and hurting in my heart. Here is my problem – most of my cravings are too shallow. I waste the power of a craving on something that will only bring me temporary satisfaction instead of eternal enjoyment.

With His fourth blessing, Jesus calls me to crave something different than the shallow pleasures of the world. He challenges me to let righteousness be the thing that I hunger for most deeply. He holds up His own heart and asks me to have an unquenchable thirst to be like Him. He offers to unleash a craving for His goodness deep into my soul. God promises a blessing and overwhelming satisfaction for those who will make looking like Jesus the constant craving of their hearts.

My Jesus Resolution today is to (gulp!) fast from the things of this world in order to reset my craving for righteousness. Fasting challenges me to turn off the world and turn my eyes and my desires over to God. Fasting can take many different forms. I can fast from media, food, shopping, noise, busyness, books, certain relationships, specific eats and drinks, or a hobby or habit for an hour, an afternoon, a day, or a set period of time. The point is to prayerfully consider what craving competes the most with my hunger to look like Jesus. (Here is a secret – it is usually the thing that you are the most afraid of giving up or the habit that you think you can’t live without.) The blessing? When I let my craving for Jesus drive my actions, control my thoughts, and form my focus, God promises to answer my hunger by giving me Himself.