Inner Strength
by Joan Rono
Many of us can go without food for a while, but, after some time, we start to be hungry.
So what is hunger? According to Wikipedia, hunger is a condition in which a person, for a sustained period, is unable to eat sufficient food to meet basic nutritional needs.
If we get hungry for a while and don’t feed ourselves, then our body starts to produce some hormones that make us feel as if we’re full. After a while we don’t feel like eating. Prolonged hunger might lead to starvation, and, our bodies lacking the essential nutrition, begin to die. Physically we need food to sustain our human life.
One thing that has been ignored many times is our inner man. So who is the inner man?
The inner man is our spiritual man, our human spirit. But, just as the physical man (outer man) needs physical food in order to sustain life, so does our spiritual man need spiritual food in order to sustain life.
Though our inner man is not seen, it doesn’t mean he’s less important. In fact it’s the other way round. Our spirit is more important. It’s the core of who we really are. In 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 we read that ‘Outwardly we are wasting away but inwardly we are being renewed’ and ‘what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.'
We have to take care of the survival of our inner man. Unless we feed our spirit, we become spiritually malnourished. After a while we’ll lose our appetite. It’s important that our inner man is nurtured frequently. Nurturing means to feed, nourish, educate, bring or train up! It’s more than just feeding. And, as with the physical body, continuous hunger will lead to starvation and its consequences.
So how do we nurture the inner man? By feeding him with spiritual food. Spiritual food is God’s word (Hebrews 5:11-14). Through a regular and consistent consumption of spiritual food and a regular prayer life, our inner man is renewed day by day.
Hunger ends when we feed, but returns after a while, so that we feed again. If we don't feel spiritually hungry, then something is wrong with our inner man. Either we’ve lost our appetite, owing to not feeding enough, or simply because we’re sick.
The great invitation to eat comes in Isaiah Chapter; ‘Listen, listen to me and eat what is good and your soul will delight in the richest of fare, Give ear and come to me, hear me that your souls may live’ (Isaiah 55:2-3).
I pray today like David you will thirst for God and long for Him to feed you with His word.
Prayer: Lord, thank You that You gave me my human spirit, and You want to fellowship and communicate with me. Help me to develop an appetite for Your Word! I want to delight myself in Your Word and not to neglect my inner man. Revive me and keep me hungry for You! Amen.
Joan Rono has been involved with Ellel ministries since 2008,working at Ellel grange for 5 years before moving to Ellel Blairmore in 2013 to work as hospitality coordinator. Having walked the Healing Journey, Joan has a passion to see others healed and transformed. She also has a passion to see young people walk in purity and holiness. She enjoys walking and reading in her spare time.
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