Angel's Food or Devil's Food Cake?

Recovering from surgery has limited me in satisfying some of my unhealthy appetites. I won’t make this blog a complete confession, but I must share this one with you. Due to my driving restriction, I’m unable to make a run to Sonic or Kroger when I need to satisfy a craving. The last couple of day’s I’ve been having an extreme, I mean extreme, craving for chocolate. I realized today that either my emotions are resulting in the need for chocolate or that my need for chocolate is resulting in my somewhat instable emotions. This became more apparent to me when I burst into tears at the final landing of the space shuttle Discovery today. I think astronauts and space travel are pretty cool, but I didn’t know that they affected me in this way.

In a pursuit to curb my craving and stabilize my emotions, I went to my pantry to see if there was a box of something that I could make to satisfy this craving. I quickly realized I had two choices. One was a box of gingerbread that was out of date and the other was a box of Angel Food Cake. The Angel Food Cake read “Fat Free” across the front, so I thought, well it’s not chocolate, but I could eat the whole thing and possibly satisfy some craving of indulgence.

I made the Angel Food Cake and sadly to my disappointment it has not satisfied the craving that I have. Even the idea of eating all of it didn’t appeal to me. Today, I envisioned myself devouring a whole pan of chewy, fudgy brownies. From brownies, my mind quickly went into visions of warm Devil’s Food Cake erupting with hot fudge sauce. In an all out battle for my mind and to keep me from losing control and possibly going crazy, the Spirit of God, quickly gave me spiritual application. I have an Angel Food Cake and yet my appetite so desperately craves a Devil’s Food Cake. Can you relate?

I quickly thought of the struggle that Paul transparently shares in Romans 7 about his own fleshly appetite. Our flesh is the part of us that has sinful desires and passions. Paul recognized his own vulnerability to want to indulge in the cravings of his flesh. Even though he had been given a new desire (Romans 6:4) through the Spirit of God, he confirms that there is a war waging (Romans 7:23) within himself. I think far too often I think that there may be a little good in my flesh. It’s a nice thought, but a deceptive one, which only leads to destruction. If I fail to realize the desperate wickedness of my own flesh I will likely walk in areas of sin in which I never thought I would indulge.

Paul openly admitted that there is nothing good in his own flesh. (Romans 7:18) If there is nothing good in my flesh and there is only perfection in the Spirit of God, I must recognize that there is an all out war going on within me. Unfortunately, it’s a little bigger and deeper than a war between Angel Food and Devil’s Food Cake. Thankfully, Paul doesn’t leave us with the overwhelming thought of a desperately wicked flesh and a waging war that must be fought on our own. In fact, he recognizes that it is not a war in which he has the ability to deliver himself. In a response to his own question of who will deliver him from this body of death, he proclaims, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”(Romans 7:25)

Peter, another apostle, affirms Paul’s proclamation that it is through Jesus Christ. Peter tells us that the divine power of Jesus Christ in us has granted to us everything we need for life and godliness. (2 Peter 1:3) How can I live and enjoy that divine power I need to fight the war waging within me? Peter tells us it is through the true knowledge of God. Where can I find the source of the true knowledge of God? The only source in which I can confidently access and enjoy this divine power is through the living, abiding word of God. When I personally study God's word and respond to the Spirit's teaching, I am accessing the power needed to destroy my destructive flesh and enjoy the fruit of the Spirit living in me. All other sources are merely supplemental. They will not be the power you or I need to fight the war waging within us.

So what will I eat or even worse what will eat me? Will it be Angel’s Food or Devil’s Food?

P.S. For those of you who are worried about my craving, my good friend brought me a Triple Chocolate Crème Cake. I’m doing better now!! That’s a whole other blog for another day!!