John 6:25-34

John 6:25-34
English Standard Version (ESV)

  What do you fear losing most?  Is it your job?  Your savings?  Your house?  Your health? 
  However we answer that question, that's likely the food that we're working towards, the food that perishes.  It doesn't mean that it's something bad -- it just means that we've lost sight of what is supposed to be our first work, which is to work, to strive, for a closer relationship with God.  When we recognize how completely dependent we are on God and how much God is willing to sacrifice to be in a relationship with us, we dedicate our energy to putting God first, and then everything else falls into line.  We can still love our job and our house and our health, but we see it through the lens of God, and so we are thankful for them as blessings and we can cope with losing them, because we know that we cannot lose the single most important thing in life.
  Naturally, the followers asked what they should do to do the work of God.  What did Jesus answer?
  Our work is to believe. 
  There's a few ways to interpret this.  One is to recognize that belief is hard -- it doesn't come easy or naturally.  We are often skeptical, and to believe without certainty, without seeing the proof or evidence ourselves, can be challenging.  It expects much of us as a thinking people -- so study the faith and learn the reasons why our faith is historically and intellectually reliable.
  Secondly, we should approach our belief with as much importance as we approach a job.  We shouldn't take faith for granted, squeezing it in to the open spots, but rather with the dedication and discipline that we would approach an important job.  How we live out our faith matters. 
  All this means that belief can still be invigorating and exciting and alive and fun -- it isn't always, but it is and should be sometimes.  We should get excited when we think about what God has done for us, and we should dream with wonder about what God has in store for us.  Like Howard Carter peering into the tomb of King Tut, barely able to grasp what was before him, we should catch enough of a glimpse to say that we see wonderful things before us!