*Bible Verse: Proverbs 15:15 All the days of the oppressed are wretched, but the cheerful heart has a continual feast. 16 Better a little with the fear of the Lord than great wealth with turmoil. 17 Better a small serving of vegetables with love than a fattened calf with hatred.

*Reflection: Let’s make clear of one thing. These verses aren’t here to promote poverty. These verses aren’t here to promote indifference. And these verses aren’t here to give us excuse for not seeking to feed the Lord’s lambs with love.

Then, what is the purpose of these verses in the wisdom book?

As believers, we ask, seek and knock. We do our very best by praying and using our time and life to experience God’s blessings in our present reality. Yet, while we are in the process from ‘having nothing’ to ‘having everything,’ there could arise the heart of despair and hopelessness.

We don’t enjoy the current state of poverty although it is heading toward the sure future of God’s blessedness and plenty. As we ask, seek and knock, our hearts are filled with darkness and pessimism. We are easy to see the negatives of how things are now than to see how great the process we are going now is toward even greater future.

If that’s my view, then my heart will be falling into despair. My heart will hate my life now. I will suffer with the daily labor and only see it as oppression. I will be saying, ‘oh how wretched,’ that will be the sigh of my life.

Will adding money or luxury change things when it comes to such a person? A person who is complaining today for thirst, hunger and lack, could that person become joyful, positive and optimistic once what was lacking gets filled? For example, let’s say I’m complaining and upset about lack of money. When I receive a lot of money, will that be the thing to change me to be happy and joyful?

The author of Proverbs is telling us an important truth. The truth is, no, I won’t be happy even though I have that very thing I want or any other luxury. That isn’t the solution as far as quenching the thirst that lives deep within me.

It’s really true. Better a small serving of vegetables with love than a fattened calf with hatred. I may have the very best and get my heart’s desire and see everything around me changing to that of what I desire, but that may not be the solution of changing my pessimistic view, my complaining heart and the spirit of despair.

What is the solution to heal that? It is Jesus Christ.

In fact, Jesus, who had nothing desirable, like a small serving of vegetables, came to us with love, did he not?

Isaiah 53:2 For he grew up before him like a young plant,
and like a root out of dry ground;
he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.

He wasn’t desirable but he has something that was big enough, great enough to satisfy and fill up our souls. He has love.

Philippians 2:6 who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
7 but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,

Though He was rich and majestic, He chose to come to the manger in Roman’s provice of Judea. Not to Rome as a son of an Emperor. No, at the most lowliest place filled with dirt, a fringe of the Empire filled with dirts and dry land, dry hearts, that’s where he landed.

Yet, he had love. He loved us. Doesn’t matter whether he was from Judea or not. Doesn’t matter how bad looking he was. He had love and that love filled us up to the brim. That love quenched our thirst to its source. That love was good enough to bring eternal joy that doesn’t end.

Jesus Christ is the solution for my sickness, for my dissatifaction, for my pessimism and for my despairing heart.

When we are quenched, fed and satisfied with Him, then we can do everything. Without Christ’s love overflowing in us, we will once again fall into despair, once again only see the negative and once again fill our minds with pessimism.

Without Christ, even the fatten calf won’t taste that good – however tasty it’s supposed to be. Let us be filled with the love of Christ first and then diligently ask, seek and knock. God will surely give. Let’s be satisfied in our spirit with Him, then we can withstand the difficulty of our current poverty as we seek our way out to plenty with God’s blessings.

*Prayer: Lord God and Father, let me learn to love my life now with its challenges and hardships because your Son Christ Jesus is with us. Let not my heart be quenched with any other things but your son Jesus. As I get satisfied, lead me so that I pray and seek with the same love of Christ for others around me who thirst and hunger