"Kumain ka na?" (Have you eaten? ) - a post about true nourishment

I was able to see my mom who was in critical condition before she passed away last year.  After the long-haul flight and the terribly slow traffic in Manila, I thought that I will miss the visiting hours. Good thing,  I made it before they are about to close, just 10 minutes.  I have mixed emotions as I finally saw her - excited, happy, sad, anxious, tired, burdensome it was heavy on my heart. When she saw me, she was smiling and asked for pen and paper (she was intubated) she wrote - "Kumain ka na ba?  (Have you eaten?)


I couldn't control the tears falling down my cheeks.  Here she was, very sick and lying on what could become her death bed but all she could still think of was me - her 50 year old daughter not nourished.  You cannot take that away from your mom - the "pangangalaga" (the love and caring of parents - I realized later on that I also ask the same question to my children when I come home late or they arrive from school or somewhere).


She wants to ensure that I'm well and nourished before her own needs. I really feel loved at that moment.  Nobody loves you more like your mom does and that makes me miss her terribly.


Why? What is it with Food?  Food gives us nourishment, strength, keeps us from being sick, makes us grow.  Food gives that comfort, rest and sense of fulfillment. It's like a goal achieved. Do you feel that satisfaction especially when you burp? Most of us, that is when we say - "Salamat sa Diyos"  (Thank you Lord)

I remember my mom and her question because in my devotional today, I read about the last supper when Jesus ate with his disciples. Luke 22:19-20 in the bible says -

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”  In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

Jesus' words at the last supper were symbolic of what was about to happen in His death, burial, and resurrection. Jesus was soon to become the true Passover lamb who would be sacrificed for the sins of the people. This would be the last Passover meal in a long history of looking forward to the Messiah.

What is happening today makes the world ravenously hungry for answers. The COVID-19 pandemic cannot be stopped at this point and whether we like to admit it or not, we are hungry, we are longing for some answers, satisfaction, we are weak.  We need not just physical but also spiritual nourishment.  Do you know that you are a child of God and just like my mom and every parent, He wants us His children to be nourished? He thought of you more than His own Son who suffered on the cross.


Deuteronomy 8:2-3 emphasizes to Israel and now to us that the source of spiritual nourishment is more important than the nourishment itself. If we have the right source, the nourishment will be good. Otherwise, the situation is hopeless. Our source of nourishment must, of course, be God

May you find peace and comfort in the presence of God this week.  May you partake in God's nourishment and think about it the next time you are asked - "Have you eaten?"