Amazon Jungle Jen

Feed the Faith⁣
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Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.⁣
Matthew 4:4⁣
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Faith is the internal wisdom, strength, and encouragement that we live by. “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17). It comes to our spirits as a gift from God every time we hear His voice. “For faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the voice of God” (Romans 10:17). This faith is the fuel that we run on. “Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31).⁣
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The challenge with faith is that it’s always dissipating. The faith that Holy Spirit supplies us with is not meant to last long. Like a great meal that nourishes us temporarily, we must eat again. In the Old Testament, manna was God’s daily bread for His people, but it could not be stored for more than a day. Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. He who feeds on Me will live” (John 6:51).⁣
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We must have a daily dose of God’s Word to live strong. Many people feed their bodies three meals a day, but only feed their spirits one cold snack a week and wonder why they struggle so much! This isn’t rocket science!⁣
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God’s voice is the fuel we need. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). The Bible is what God said yesterday, but if Holy Spirit makes it come alive to us today, it becomes present-tense food.⁣
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To live strong, encouraged, and wise, we’ve got to feed our minds, bodies, and spirits constantly. We can do this through quiet times with the Lord, worship music, or devotional moments throughout the day. Friend, He prepares a table before us, for us (Psalm 23:5)! So why live malnourished?

What’s Missing?⁣
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When Paul came to Ephesus he found some disciples. He asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They said to him, “We have never heard of the Holy Spirit.”⁣
Acts 9:1-2⁣
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As the great missionary and preacher Paul traveled, he came to the city of Ephesus. There, he was surprised to find a small band of disciples. After visiting with them for a while, he asked a question: “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” Why would the apostle ask such a question? What was it about these disciples that led him to inquire about their relationship with Holy Spirit? No doubt he saw something in them that caused him to wonder if they knew about the Holy Spirit of Jesus. He saw that something was missing. ⁣
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They were probably good people, not living in sin, or evil. However, according to the context of this passage, something was not there that should have been.⁣
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To find out why Paul inquired as he did, we need to look in the Bible to see what should be present in the lives of believers who are in right relationship with Holy Spirit. Ephesians 4:11-13, Galatians 5:22-23, 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 and Romans 12:6-8 give us very precise lists of what people can see on the outside of us if the Spirit of God is working on the inside of us.⁣
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These passages make it clear that a person can be saved yet still not have the power of Holy Spirit operating in them. Jesus' death and resurrection give us eternal life, but only Holy Spirit can bring us into the abundant life and power that we are meant to enjoy, through Christ, here on this earth.⁣
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Today, in modern Christianity, we often settle for a powerless, Spiritless life lived in the energy of human willpower, discipline, and self-effort. But all the discipline and self-effort in the world can never do for us what Holy Spirit is meant to do. ⁣
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Are you tired of living a life of “trying” to do right and be a “good” Christian? I sure remember a time when I was! We don’t need to be perfect and we don’t need to be Bible scholars. The Bible just says that we need to be thirsty. “If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink” (John 7:37-39). If we thirst for something more from Jesus, that’s Him calling us to Himself. “Everyone who seeks finds. How much more will your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask?” (Luke 11:10, 13)

When God Sat With Sinners⁣
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The Son of Man has come to earth, and they called Him, “a glutton and a winebibber, a Friend of sinners!”⁣
Matthew 11:19⁣
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What if God stepped down from Heaven and walked on the earth He created? How would people respond if the Almighty actually showed up where they lived? Don’t you think the church would make a big deal about His visit? Maybe even throw a celebration? And what about the preachers? Surely, they would roll out the red carpet for Him!⁣
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Well, two thousand years ago, that’s exactly what happened. “The Word became flesh and walked among us” (John 1:14). But instead of the reception you might expect, the religious leaders weren’t happy at all. After watching God in human form for a while, their evaluation of Him was shocking. They called Him a “glutton, a drunk, and a Friend of sinners” (Matthew 11:19). Imagine that—the very people who were supposed to represent God completely missed Him when He arrived. Rather than welcoming Him with open arms, they rejected Him outright.⁣
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Why did these preachers fail to recognize and embrace their God? Instead of welcoming Him, they scorned Him, and eventually, they killed Him! How could this happen? It’s simple: they had created a god in their own image, one they could control. They missed the true, living God who didn’t fit their mold. And we need to be careful that we don’t fall into the same trap—following a version of God we’ve made up, rather than the real God of the Bible. When God doesn’t meet our expectations, are we offended? As Jesus said, “Blessed is he who is not offended by Me” (Matthew 11:6).⁣
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The truth is, it’s not about how much we know or how religious we appear. It’s about knowing and loving the real Jesus, the One who was called the “Friend of sinners.” Personally, I couldn’t care less about what He ate or drank. But I’m thrilled by the title “Friend of sinners.” Seeing Jesus sit and eat with the worst sinners in town fills my heart with hope—if He could visit with them, maybe He would visit with someone like me.

The Trampled Church⁣⁣
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“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall the earth be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.”⁣⁣
Matthew 5:13⁣⁣
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This is one of the most powerful images Jesus ever gave us. His church was meant to have a profound effect on society, acting as the preservative, just as salt preserves meat. After He ascended into Heaven, His church took this seriously, and their impact was so great that it was said in Acts they “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6). In reality, they were turning it right side up.⁣⁣
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How did this happen? This group of uneducated, poor, and common people had no money, no organization, no building, and no formal training. Yet they truly “salted the earth.” What made the difference? They had the Holy Spirit. As Jesus said, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8). Holy Spirit was the power that fueled the transformation.⁣⁣
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But Jesus also gave a warning: if the salt loses its flavor, it becomes “good for nothing” (Matthew 5:13). A powerless church, one that no longer impacts its community, becomes “good for nothing” and will be “trampled underfoot by men.” This is a sobering reality for today. Are we, the American church, truly having a great impact on our decaying society, or are we being ridiculed and trampled underfoot?⁣⁣
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Many complain that the church is being mocked because of the evil in the world, but Jesus makes it clear: the church’s disrespect today is a result of its powerless condition. The answer is not to hide in our sanctuaries and wait for rescue. We must cry out to God to restore His Spirit to us so we can once again be the “salt of the earth.”⁣⁣
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If our nation rots, it won’t be because of the sinners—it will be because of a powerless church. Friend, it’s time to rise up and never be content to watch our cities decay while we hold the power to pray and bring transformation. Come on, salt shaker, we’ve got some flavoring to do!