food and fasting

Good morning all,
I hope this Wednesday finds you well and open to God's Spirit within you. As we fast this lunch time I'd like to invite you to consider your food. A couple of weeks ago we talked about how the global economy has given rise to a global food system. In the US we reap some major benefits from that international situation, fresh fruit year-round, for example. At the same time, the availability of such a wide range of food sometimes keeps us from thinking about where our food comes from and how it gets to us. Someone grew the food on our table; do we know if they are able to support their family by the food they grow? Someone picked the fruit we enjoy; were they paid a just wage for their labor? Do they have access to health care if their child gets sick? Our food had to get from where it was grown to our table; what impact does that have on our world?

In food like in everything we buy we have many choices. Each of our choices can contribute to abundance for others or to hardship and difficulty for our neighbors. How do we bring our life choices and our consumption more in line with our faith? Are we part of the problem or part of the solution? Maybe both? What's the next step for you to eat and live a bit more faithfully?


Let's pray together:
God of font and table, we thank you for the abundance of your earth. We thank you for the rich variety of food to eat and the resources to feed our families. We ask your blessings on our lives as we chose not to eat this lunch. We pray that you would use this time to turn our hearts to you in dependence and love. We pray that when we break our fast you would use that meal to strengthen us for service. Pour out your blessings on all those who are a part of our meals: the farmers and laborers, the animals and fields, the drivers and pilots and salespeople and cooks. Bring us closer by your Spirit and fill us with your love for others. We pray these things in the name of Jesus, whose banquet we await in glory, amen.