Tuesday, December 3, 2002

For forty days Jesus was tested by the devil, and during that time, he went without eating. When it was all over, he was hungry. Luke 4:2

It's hard to imagine being without food for forty days;
It's hard to imagine being without food for four days;
It's hard to imagine being without food;
Jesus lived without food in the desert.

It's hard to imagine being without food and being tested.

Being tested when you're a woman in Afghanistan,
          Hoping you and your children will survive the bullets;
Being tested when you're a man loosing his farm to the government,
          Hoping you will find some other way of life;
Being tested when you're told you have cancer,
          Hoping you will live, not have much pain;
Being tested when you're a village member in Kenya,
          Hoping the drugs will come to treat the AIDS;
Being tested when you're a survivor of the Trade Center collapse;
          Hoping they will find the others.
Being tested when you're old and sick,
          Hoping you will die soon.

Jesus stayed alive in the desert without food,
          For God was with him.
Jesus was tested by the devil and persevered,
          For God was with him.

Each of us has been in the desert without food;
Each of us has been tested and endured;
          For God is with us.

Claudia Stine


All contents copyright 2002 by the Wisconsin Chapter of the Methodist Federation for Social Action. Permission is granted to United Methodist congregations, individuals and groups to reproduce and distribute this devotional without charge. All other use requires the advance permission of the editor.