Stay Hungry

By Pastor Eric

Just like many students today, High School sports was a big part of my teenage years. I enjoyed playing football, but I loved the game of basketball. I had a passion for the combination of technical, mental, and physical skills required to play at a very high level. I poured myself into the game–practicing each week and all weekend long. I would even carry a basketball through the hallways of school and just about anywhere else I went. I wanted to be on the court–and when I was, I had a very strong desire to execute at a high level and win! You could say that I had a constant hunger for the game and everyone who knew me could see this passion in me. 

In my junior summer, I had the opportunity to work with some of the coaches/scouts from Norfolk State University, a D1 school. This was my chance to show them how good I was and to learn some things along the way. During that summer we received a pep talk from the head coach of the Spartans that I won’t forget. It was filled with the normal “hype” talk and he poured into us the concepts of dedication, teamwork, and hard work. But it was what he said at the end of that speech that stuck with me. Coach said, “If you want to move to the next level, you have to be hungry for the game, you have to stay hungry for the game.”

Be and stay hungry for the game? I read Romans 12:11 this morning which says, “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.” The Message version puts it this way, “Don’t burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master.” As that passage penetrated my heart, the words of coach ringed in my ears, “Be Hungry and Stay Hungry!” 

I want to be hungry and stay hungry for my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I want to go to that next level in my relationship with him, to keep my heart and soul fueled and aflame for him! My faith means more to me than anything in this world and I want to stay hungry……don’t you? I want to wake up every morning on my knees, to be in and have his word in my heart, to breathe in the life that he gives like it is the oxygen I need to live! I want to be so hungry for Jesus and my faith that it pours out in every part of my life for everyone to know and experience! I want my faith and love for God to be contagious! I want to experience the next level, DON’T YOU?

“…zeal (passion, energy, love) for your house consumes me….”  Psalm 69:9a   

We have many things in our lives that we are passionate about, things that we will literally pour ourselves into with all that we are……WHAT ABOUT YOUR LIFE WITH JESUS? Do you have such a passion for your faith that it consumes who you are night and day, changes the way you see and live in this world, and does it keep you hungry for more?

Brothers and sisters, if you don’t have this kind of faith, step it up to the next level, BE HUNGRY AND STAY HUNGRY!!!

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” Matthew 5:6

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