A Little Man

Rob Wolgemuth is my nephew. He’s a fine, Godly man who, along with his wife, Rebecca, shepherd a family with five young kids.

During Rob’s childhood, I had many opportunities to interact with him. He was the son of my oldest brother and as such, Rob was often more like a little brother to me than a nephew.

Rob’s early introduction to the Christian faith included some of the familiar phrases that many of us utilized to describe a relationship with Jesus. This included the frequently used description, birthed out of Ephesians 3 that paraphrases into the explanation that when you become a Christian, “Jesus lives in your heart.”

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:14–19, ESV)

With the inquisitiveness that was a part of Rob’s youthfully naïve demeanor, he asked an appropriate and logical question. It went something like this; “If Jesus lives in my heart, is there a little man who lives in my stomach who throws food to Him?”

Over the years I’ve relished thinking about this story. It has produced both laughter and stark reflection.

Exactly how does the Jesus that lives in my heart get nourishment to survive and thrive? In fact, the question of a child has opened the pursuit of a lifetime. Feeding Jesus.

Here again, Ephesians 3 informs the menu for Christ. Rooted and grounded in love, and consequently invited into an unending supply of His love that obliterates all knowledge, so that I can be filled with the fullness of God.

Rob nailed it. The Jesus who dwells in my heart is nourished moment by moment by what I feed my heart, soul, mind and strength.

The beginning of the new year escorts many of us to reconsider our diet. Perhaps we would be well served to first consider Rob’s question? What am I feeding Jesus? Then, and only then, will we be satisfied.

I’m starting 2018 by considering what’s on my menu.