A Second Piece of Cake
Confession: I ate a piece of cake. It was delicious. It made my mouth so happy; I ate a second piece of cake. I wasn’t hungry. I didn’t need the additional slice to give me sustenance or tie me over till my next meal. I desired the taste, and I gave in.
Later that night, as I lay in bed, I decided the second piece wasn’t a good idea. I didn’t feel awful, like I was going to “re-experience the cake,” but I definitely wasn’t feeling the joys of a happy and contented stomach. God chose that moment to pose a question: In what other ways do you choose desire over need?
I didn’t want to answer the question. Would you?
I processed through God’s question for several days. In my cake story, I realized if I were to continually choose my desires and consistently consume seconds and thirds, my stomach would revolt. I would pack on additional weight becoming self-conscious about my appearance. I would find it difficult to move, possibly becoming short of breath. A new wardrobe would be in my future, but it wouldn’t come with the excitement that idea normally brings. Desire would become the driving force of unwanted circumstances.
How many times do we make a choice just because we want what we want?
- online shopping
- procrastinating on chores
- watching a questionable movie or TV show
- sleeping in and missing church
- making fun of someone so we feel better about ourselves
- going over budget because “it’s such a good deal”
- avoiding someone so that we don’t have to talk to them
- playing games on our phone instead of investing in our family
Choosing desire over need is a spiritual issue. It’s not about what we eat, the new shoes, our appearance or finding “me time.” It’s about Lordship. First Corinthians 6:19 & 20 says, “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.” (NLT) We are God’s temple, the place where a holy, perfect God dwells. Paul clearly states that we do not belong to ourselves; we belong to God Almighty. When we choose to live according to what we desire, we are not living within the boundaries of “you do not belong to yourself.”
Processing God’s hard question led me to a more difficult question: “Does the decision I am about to choose fit with the goal of knowing Jesus, following Jesus, and living out the truth of His Lordship?” I admit I originally fought the idea of asking such a question over every detail of my life including second helpings of cake; then I recognized I wasn’t honoring God.
We need Jesus. We need forgiveness. We need God’s grace to make us holy. We need God’s wisdom and strength and direction and peace. We need God to be Lord if we desire abundant life. I believe we need to willingly ask ourselves the hard question of Lordship, so we continue to remember we do not belong to ourselves. When the Holy Spirit resides firmly within us, it’s a life-celebration and God provides the cake.
