Who's Hungry?

I mentioned I was reading the confessions of St. Augustine and was shocked by it. I didn’t read it for my own personal reading, I read it for school stuff, but one thing that really shocked me is that you could read it and say “wow this is actually relevant.” Augustine goes through the same issues people go through today especially young adults. He gives in to peer pressure, struggles with shoplifting, and suffers from loneliness. After years of searching for the right thing, hobby, or person he finds God and reflects through the whole retelling of his life how he wished he could do it over, how he felt he was wasting time that could have been filled with meaning. My church has been finishing up a series on the Sermon on the Mount and a Bible study I attend is also reading the same thing, mainly the Beatitudes. One verse especially stands out to me, it is Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” Now I’ve read the Sermon on the Mount, but recently this has been on my mind, what does it mean to hunger and thirst for righteousness, I think Augustine provides the answer. The book was written well after Augustine became a Christian so he adds comments throughout remarking on his past, and one thing that stands out is that he really knows and loves God, the whole book reads like a conversation, a prayer. I want to be a good person, hey we all do, but how often do I hunger, do I desire to be good so much that it literally consumes me until I fulfill it. How often do I desire to achieve righteousness? The Sermon on the Mount is a tough message; many try to say “Oh Jesus couldn’t have possible meant that.” But here’s what I think, I think the point Jesus is trying to make is this, if you want Him go get Him, if you’re hungry for God fulfill that desire but do so whole heartedly and put in the effort.