Africa Reflections 3 - Starvation Mentality

We were all shocked at how much the orphans could eat.

On our first Sunday in Uganda we had dinner at the Loving One by One orphanage. We were all amazed as we saw the mountainous piles of food on the plates of these 5, 6, & 7 year-olds.

We were even more astounded as they scarfed down their food, most of them finishing everything that had been on their plates. One boy in particular though, didn't finish. His name is Henry. I sat next to Henry as he ate...and ate..and ate. Until he let out a painful sigh - he had put way too much on his plate and couldn't finish.

We mentioned to the founder of the orphanage how amazed we were that these kids could and would eat so much. She responded, "They still have that starvation mentality."

It made sense. All of these kids were impoverished orphans who had lived lives where they didn't always know if they'd be able to eat again. And so, when they have the opportunity to have a heaping plateful of food, they take it...and consume it all.

Sure American's eat a ton too. But that's because we have no self control, hence our obesity epidemic.

Regardless, it struck me as incredibly sad, but understandable, that these children still had that starvation mentality.

But there's one area in our life when a Starvation Mentality is right:

"Persons need not and ought not to set any bounds to their spiritual and gracious appetites...

instead they ought to be endeavoring by all possible ways to inflame their desires and to obtain more spiritual pleasures...

our hungerings and thirstings after God and Jesus Christ and after holiness can't be too great for the value of these things for they are things of infinite value...

therefore endeavor to promote spiritual appetites by laying yourself in the way of allurement.

There is no such thing as excess in our taking of this spiritual food.

There is no virtue in temperance in spiritual feasting."

- Jonathan Edwards