08/08/2026
First Lady’s Food for Thought
“Who’s Responsible for Feeding You?”
I’ve heard people say, “I need to be fed. I’m not getting fed here.”
That statement has caused me to stop and think: Who is responsible for feeding us spiritually?
Yes, the pastor has a responsibility to rightly divide the Word of God, to teach, preach, encourage, challenge, correct, and shepherd the flock. We should expect the Word of God to be preached faithfully and truthfully. We should come to church expecting to hear something that will strengthen our faith, convict our hearts, encourage our spirits, and help us grow.
But here is the food for thought:
The pastor is not our only source of spiritual nourishment.
The pastor can prepare the meal, but we have to develop an appetite for the Word of God.
The Bible says in 1 Peter 2:2, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.”
Notice the word desire. There has to be a personal hunger and thirst for the things of God.
We cannot expect to be spiritually full from one sermon a week when we haven’t opened our Bibles all week.
We cannot place the entire responsibility of our spiritual nourishment on the pastor when we have access to the Word of God in our homes, in our Bibles, through Bible study, through prayer, and in our personal time with God.
Church should feed you, but church should not be the only place you eat.
Think about it naturally. If I only ate one meal every Sunday, I wouldn’t blame the cook because I was hungry on Wednesday. At some point, I have to take responsibility for feeding myself.
The same is true spiritually.
The pastor can give us the Word, but we have to receive it.
The pastor can preach it, but we have to study it.
The pastor can encourage us, but we have to pray.
The pastor can point us toward Christ, but we have to seek Him for ourselves.
And sometimes, if we’re honest, when we say, “I’m not being fed,” what we may really mean is, “I’m not hearing what I want to hear.”
Because sometimes the Word doesn’t come to make us comfortable. Sometimes it comes to correct us. Sometimes it challenges our behavior, our attitudes, our priorities, and even our excuses.
A good meal isn’t always the meal we crave. Sometimes it’s the meal we need.
So before we say, “I’m not being fed,” perhaps we should ask ourselves:
Have I been feeding myself?
Have I opened my Bible?
Have I prayed?
Have I sought God’s presence?
Have I attended Bible study?
Have I asked God to give me understanding?
Have I come to church with an open heart and an expectant spirit?
Because spiritual growth requires participation.
The pastor has a responsibility to feed the flock, but every believer has a responsibility to develop their own relationship with God.
Don’t become so dependent on someone else’s revelation that you neglect your own relationship with the Revealer.
Come to church hungry. Sit at the table. Receive the Word. But when you leave the sanctuary, don’t leave your Bible and your prayer life behind.
Because ultimately, your spiritual appetite is your responsibility.
And that’s my First Lady’s Food for Thought:
Don’t just say you’re not being fed. Check your own plate.
