Association of Lutheran Resource Centers

Blog home for the Association of Lutheran Resource Centers (ALRC).

Food

Posted on March 20, 2011 by Karen Matthias-Long

(I posted this on my Lenten devotional blog, but thought it was worth posting here, too – as a way to share a wonderful book,  to share a way to feed the hungry that will make your mouth drop and to share a worship idea.)

“It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Matthew 4:4

It suddenly occurred to me today that the same part of the body I use for eating is the same part of the body from which I speak. My mouth is a tool used for both things. Not just eating. Not just speaking. Here are a few thoughts that came to mind when I read this passage:

  • One does not live by bread ALONE. God’s word is also food….words that come from a mouth. This picture of the bird and chicks is how I imagine God when I read this passage. God is like a mother bird that feeds her scrawny hatch-lings – their mouths eager for this food that the mother bird offers. I need both earthly food and God’s word to truly live.
  • Eating is spiritual – or at least, should be. How many

Images of hope

Posted on October 15, 2010 by Catherine Fink

Feelings of loss have overwhelmed me this week.

In fact, those same feelings have been dogging me for months. As people of faith, what do we do with these feelings of loss and sorrow? An old movie came to mind yesterday that I think answers this question: Places in the Heart (1984). If you’ve seen it, you’ll remember the final communion scene. It is one of the best images ever of “a foretaste of the feast to come” which takes away sorrow and loss. This image gives me hope. It is what I imagine God’s table to be: the place where everyone is there, everyone is welcome, and God is present!

What is your favorite image of faithful hope?