Sustenance for Body and Soul

Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

~~~ Ex 16: 2-4, 12-15 ~~~ Psalm 78 ~~~ Eph 4:17, 20-24 ~~~ John 6:24-35 ~~~

Jesus said to them,
"I am the bread of life;
whoever comes to me will never hunger,
and whoever believes in me will never thirst."

Verse thirty-five from this sixth chapter of John says it all...

Jesus is the bread of life.

It is he who is our food. most importantly our food for the soul.

Every time I hear this passage from Exodus of God feeding

Moses and his people in

the desert with manna from heaven I get this vision...

While all of the people are asleep God sends down dew as moisture;

which is much needed in the desert.

But then God covers the ground with 'Frosted Flakes'.

When the people get up in the morning the bright sunshine

glistens on the flakes and the sugar particles sparkle.

I am being funny, but it is such a real picture.

The appearance of this manna is not the point; the point is God

gave the people bread or manna to eat.

He led them through the desert but he never abandoned them.

This food for their body also fed their soul

because it gave them hope.

These 'frosted flakes' kept them believing.

It kept them believing that Moses was being led by God.

It kept them believing that they were right to follow to stick with him.

Today we can look back at this time and see the connection with what

Jesus is saying in the gospel today.

He is the 'bread of life'.

God sent Jesus down from heaven...his gift to us...

so that he could die on the cross and become our spiritual food forever.

Whether we are walking through the desert

or along the seashore we have the gift of

the eternal bread of life.

Each time we come to Mass the bread we bring to the altar is changed

by the power of the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ.

It becomes the bread of life.

We are spiritually fed, our soul is nourished with so much more

than we bring to the altar.

Our small offering is returned to us a life giving source for our soul.

In the desert God sent the manna from heaven to feed their bodies,

but in turn their souls were also fed because they believed.

When we receive the consecrated bread...the Eucharist we are fed spiritually,

but our bodies are also fed, at least symbolically.

God transforms the bread we bring into his very own

bread of life.

The people in the desert grumbled and became disgruntled as time progressed.

God fed them in spite of their belligerent attitudes.

No matter what is happening in my life I know I can always come to the table

of the Lord and be fed by his body and blood.

He is the 'Bread of Life' for me.

 I cannot imagine my life without this gift.

Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof,

but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.

Only say the word and my soul will be fed.

I believe that you are the

"Bread of Life"

and I thank you for giving us this gift of sustenance.