Summary: "The Church of the Open Bible," read Colton as Dad pulled away from the curb. "We sure were wrong about this church!" Their family was on vacation and when they had looked for a church to attend, they thought the name of this church indicated that there would be preaching from the Word of God. "We were the only ones in church who had Bibles," Colton added, "and there weren't any in the pews, either." "No, but nobody needed a Bible," said his sister Josie. "All the preacher talked about was how important it was to elect a good mayor." Dad nodded. "You're right," he said, "and that's a sad thing." The following day, Josie studied the map as they drove along the highway. "We'll soon be coming to a town," she reported. "Can we stop to eat? I'm hungry!" "Me, too," agreed Colton. "How far away is it?" "Idon't think it's very far," replied Josie. "Maybe five miles or so." She was right, but . . . "Oh, no!"Colton pointed to the highway sign a little before the exit. It indicated that gas was available there, but no food or lodging. "No restaurants," moaned Colton, "and I'm starving!" "This town must be really small," said Josie. She remembered a silly little song kids at camp had sung in the dining hall. "Here we sit like birds in the wilderness," she sang, and Colton joined her. ". . . waiting to be fed," they finished together. Dad grinned. "We're not doing so good," he said. "Yesterday we sat in church like birds in the wilderness waiting to be fed spiritual food, but we weren't given any. Now we've come to a town with no place for us to eat." Mom nodded. "It seems like the people who attend that church would starve spiritually, just like we'd starve physically if we depended on restaurants in this town to feed us," she observed. Colton sat up straight. "Hey, look!" he said. "I see a couple of billboards up ahead advertising restaurants in the next town!" "All right!" exclaimed Josie. "I guess we won't starve after all." "Nope,"said Dad, "and we don't need to starve spiritually, either. We can read our Bibles every day. And we'll soon be back to our own church, too." How About You? Have you ever had to skip a meal? Did you feel hungry? Do you sometimes skip spiritual food? That should make you hungry, too--hungry to know what God wants to teach you. Don't neglect your spiritual life. God wants you to be spiritually healthy, and taking in the "milk of the word" helps you do that. So attend church and Sunday school, and also read your Bible for yourself. Think about what it teaches, and put into practice the things you find there. Today's Key Verse: Desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby. (1 Peter 2:2) Today's Key Thought: Be sure to get spiritual food
