I used to starve myself.
For years, I went through life learning how to neglect the thunderous rumble of the emptiness inside. It began as a whisper, a modest groan to remind me when my stomach was sufficiently depleted of nutrients.
But the whispers eventually became shouts, and the shouts often echoed out of the mouths of those who loved me most. “Eat more,” they’d say with concern dripping off the tips of their tongues. “You’re too skinny,” they’d comment when my ninety-eight pound frame came into view.
But the thing about it is that I was eating. I was scarfing down mounds and mounds and mounds of what the world was feeding me. Because when I’d stare down at my slender legs to find no trace of the coveted “thigh gap,” my mind would think, “fat.” And I’d believe it. I ate up every ounce of what the world was dishing out, and it was killing me.
Eventually, I learned how to refuse what was being offered. That’s when I began fueling my body with nourishment, when I started filling myself with life-giving foods. And though it has been years since this change has occurred in my life, the world’s temptation still tries to grapple for my appetite.
But I know now. Because the bread that I am consuming is full of promise. It is full of life.
Sometimes what the world offers us is junk. It is artificial and full of the lies our minds like to believe. But the bread that Christ offers is vital to our souls (see John 6:51). It sustains and enriches and nourishes.
In these time when we cannot receive the Bread of Life in the Blessed Sacrament, make a spiritual communion. Because after you’ve binged on the cheap lies the world is asking you to swallow, His bread will bring you home again.
His bread will bring you life.
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Brittany Calavitta is an enthusiastic advocate for a good book, strong coffee, and a hopeful heart. After battling years of infertility, she and her husband welcomed their first child on September 11, 2016. You can find out more about her here.
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