Download Worksheet for Session
hungryforjesus Abba Father
YOU are a Good Good Father
and You love us
with an everlasting Love
a love we cannot fully comprehend
but we can believe
and grow in
and learn from
Member #6 an d find healing and strength
new understandings
mercies new
every morning
grace sufficient
Thank You Holy God for this chance to meet with others
and to grow in YOU as we seek YOU
for who YOU are
in Your might y name
Name above ALL Names
we pray
hungryforjesus Hello from Ottawa, Canada the frozen north, eh
Thank you very much to Dulcinea and Obie for helping me and all of you at CIR for such a warm welcome! I’m so pleased to be joining you today to guide “Heart Hunger: Letting Jesus Satisfy Our Deepest Spiritual Needs”.
A housekeeping item first – please raise your hand if you have printed off the worksheet from the workshop home page.
If you haven’t had a chance to print it, please grab some paper and a pen because there is some filling in to do later. ty
Ok, Great! Before the worksheet, let’s do an icebreaker. This workshop is about Heart Hunger. Clearly, we are not talking about the physical heart. It’s about craving something deep inside us and how we satisfy that need. Heart Hunger is the subject of so many secular books, movies and songs …. Can you name one?
Just go ahead and answer when you have thought of one.
Member #1 Both Sides Now by Joni Mitchell
hungryforjesus Anyone else?
Member #2 Jesus Diet
Member #3 I’m so lonesome I could cry
Member #4 Hungry Eyes (Dirty Dancing )
Member #5 youve really a hold on me
Member #6 love hurts
Member #3 Most any country song. (LOL)
Kevan rofl
Member #4 Can’t Live Without You (Bread )
Kevan most Blues songs
Member #3 nods
Member #2 drop dead fred (movie)
Member #1 Notting Hill (movie)
hungryforjesus Great, thanks for the answers. They are all good examples of that. I remembered one from Bruce Springsteen after I created this material. He recorded a song called “Hungry Heart”. The chorus – “Everybody’s got a hungry heart”; “Everybody’s got a hungry heart”. He’s right. So people feel this instinctively but not everyone knows what the real hunger is. Like in my story.
Let’s move on to my story.
Please turn to page 1 of 8, numbered 1. Judy’s Hungry Heart
Bulimia – What’s it like to have an eating disorder for almost half a century? Here’s a small peek into the realities of that. In the span of forty-five years, bulimia was my way of life. Every single day. I restricted food to be the “perfect weight” and overcome my feelings of not being good enough. I purged the calories I ate with a rigid exercise schedule that was non-negotiable. On the other side of restricting food was bingeing to deal with overwhelming emotions or extreme hunger from eating too little. I’ve been to the moon and back on my treadmill to stay slim! Food was my adversary and a short-term, fickle friend. No, eating wasn’t a normal activity to sustain my life and be enjoyable. Decades of food misuse and exercise obsession caught up with me in the form of joint issues and abnormal liver cells.
When you are done reading, please reply what you think my heart was hungry for in those behaviors
Member #2 love
Member #4 acceptance
Member #5 God’s love
Member #1 acceptance, to be wanted, loved, needed
Member #2 control
Member #3 self love and acceptance
Member #6 understanding
Member #5 fear
Member #6 peace
Member #4 self worth
Member #5 approval from others
hungryforjesus Yes, I had all those and more. Thank you …
Now let’s go on to the next part of my story – sexual sin.Adding to that, reckless sex in my teens was a real hair-raiser! I “slept around” as we used to say. The behaviors were so risky I could easily have ended up a tragic crime statistic. But I was blind to the risks. All I could focus on were feelings of acceptance through male sexual attention. This behavior left me with a very unhealthy view of sexuality, which I am still working through today.
Member #4 love
Member #5 romantic love
Member #1 acceptance, proof that you were beautiful
Member #4 connection
Member #4 security
Member #2 wanting to feel wanted
Member #4 yes!
Member #5 friendship
Member #3 acceptance
Member #3 never sex
Member #3 sex divorced from love
Member #5 to be seen
hungryforjesus Yes, some similar themes are emerging – love, acceptance, security, worth. Thank you for all your excellent answers
hungryforjesus Finally, Workaholism – I have also been a workaholic and very performance-driven all my life. I loved receiving recognition for my work and enjoyed the ‘‘rush” of accolades. After many years of taking on too much work to earn this recognition, I finally had a burn-out and left my career. I am still recovering from the physical, mental and spiritual exhaustion from decades of overwork and people-pleasing. I still have to fight against a tendency towards perfectionism, which was a key part of striving for recognition and praise.
What hungers do you spot in this aspect of my story?
Member #5 sense of purpose
Member #1 Control, to be needed
Member #4 worth / value
Member #5 self esteem
Member #2 need to please so acceptance could happen
Member #5 recognition from others
Member #4 yes, attention – being notice to counter feeling invisible or less than
Member #5 sense of importance
Member #3 looking for approval from the wrong sources
Member #6 connection
hungryforjesus Absolutely right. And as Clara said it was not about sex, food or work, was it? And seeking to meet my hunger in the wrong ways. Destructive ways, as you can see.
Member #4 nods
hungryforjesus Does any of this resonate with your story?
Member #5 yeah
Member #4 absolutely
Member #5 yes
Member #2 all of it
Member #1 oh yes
Member #3 oh yes.. almost identical
Member #1 different story in some ways, but similar longings…
Member #3 include drinking to push back all the guilt about the other things
Member #4 related to being driven… a searching ache
hungryforjesus It’s not easy to look at our sin. The hunger does become a painful ache for sure.Thanks for sharing. We have a lot of common hungers. Now let’s look at 6 key needs God has placed in our hearts and where we stand with them.
Please go to page 2 of 8, Item numbered 2 “Six Deep Spiritual Needs (Holy Hungers) God Places In Our Hearts”.
There are more than 6 for sure but let’s focus on these today
Member #4 ok
hungryforjesus Today we are considering these six deep spiritual needs:
1. Have A Personal Relationship With God
2. Feeling Loved
3. Being Forgiven
4. Have Purpose
5. Sense of Security
6. Feeling of Worth
They sound familiar from our stories! Please look at question a. on this page. What do you think of the list?
Member #3 They are all interrelated to me.
Member #6 a lot of foundational things
Member #4 core needs
Member #1 At least for me, if I’m struggling with one, I’m struggling with the others,just in different degrees
Member #6 YES
Member #5 yes I agree
Member #3 I am judging myself because I am thinking….
I want a personal relationship with God just to get Love and security. 🙁
Member #5 I feel neglected by my nest friend
hungryforjesus The Spirit has already touched our hearts with this list. I send a hug to each of you. I’m going to skip question b. because I think we need more time for question c.
Question c. is the most important one in the workshop. Which of these needs are you feeling a strong hunger for in this season of your life? Dvora alluded to that. Please note them on the sheet and share as and when you feel comfortable.
Member #3 For me it’s the personal relationship because if I have that all else will follow.
Member #5 agree
Member #6 its #5 for me sense of security
Member #4 I’m feeling a strong hunger for forgiveness, security and deeper connection in personal relationship with God
Member #2 yes ..#5 for me too
Member #1 Its hard for me to say which is first. When I’m with people, I want to feel loved and worthwhile; when I’m alone I struggle with feeling forgiven and secure — but when I reflect on these, they all relate to my relationship with God…
Member #5 feeling loved
hungryforjesus Certainly, the personal, correct relationship with God is the foundation for all the others. It’s number one for a reason. We build on from that. And it’s only Jesus who can faithfully meet these hungers. Any other questions or points before we move on?
Member #1 I think I struggle most with getting it from my head into my heart… permanently
Member #4 relate
Member #3 part of me wants to tangle up the “definition/meaning/ etc of God in that and then that hurts the relationship
Member #5 without good relationship with loved ones much loses meaning
Member #6 ((((Member #5)))))
Member #4 I struggle with feelings of intimidation (coming from ME not God) in my relationship with HIm… I find it difficult to relate to a Holy, Perfect God …
Member #4 Hard for me to accept that He doesn’t lord it over me that He is God…
God is beyond my comprehension… I instinctively fear “things that are beyond me or bigger than me”
Member #5 I have trouble understanding the humanity of Christ
hungryforjesus I so appreciate your honesty and openness. These needs are deep and are often accompanied by wounds. Let’s move on to Jesus and Scripture to help us with your concerns. Some of your concerns may also come clearer later in the workshop.
hungryforjesus : Let’s look now at Scripture which shows us that Lord Jesus satisfies them all so fully. Please go to Page 3 of 8, Item Number 3. “How Jesus Truly Satisfies These Holy Heart Hungers”
hungryforjesus Again, there are many Scriptures to validate this but I have only included one example. I’ll do more teaching in this one and get your feedback at the end, okay?
Member #6 yes
Member #2 yes
Member #4 ok
Member #3 ok
hungryforjesus Be alert to anything that helps smooth over what you just mentioned. Have A Personal Relationship With God: John 14:6-7 “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
This is the essence of it all. Jesus is the very embodiment of Father God. Believing in Jesus and following Him is the only way to a personal relationship with God. God says in Mark 1:11 that Jesus is His son and He is very pleased with him. Jesus doesn’t just show the WAY, tell the TRUTH and point to LIFE. He IS those things!!
Member #6 YES
hungryforjesus It’s beyond our human understanding but it’s true.
Feeling Loved — John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him”.
This is the passage that many have memorized. I love the emphasis on SO LOVED and that Jesus came to save the world, not condemn it. An unfathomable, trustworthy love really. We can approach Him. He invites us to.
He loved the whole world. That includes all of us here – always!
Being Forgiven – Romans 3:22-23 “This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
Righteousness means being right with God. The verses are saying it’s faith in Jesus that make us right with God and that we are all sinners. God knows we have a hunger to be forgiven and that Jesus satisfies that hunger. You could also put this Scripture in Have a Personal Relationship with Jesus.
It’s so encouraging that we don’t have to bring him a whole truck load of good works to be forgiven. We bring our empty hands and our broken hearts.
Member #2 yes
Member #4 agree
Member #6 yes
Member #5 I’m hungry
hungryforjesus What are you hungry for Member #5?
Member #5 i guess these need but its coming out in I want to go buy eat drink or something inappropriate
wrong ways to meet my inner needs
hungryforjesus Satan doesn’t like when we glorify Jesus. Just hold on and you’ll get to the end.
Have Purpose: 2 Cor. 5: 18-20 “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”
Do you see our purpose in this? We have the ministry of helping others be reconciled to God through Jesus. That is our highest calling. We are ambassadors for Christ. That doesn’t mean we all have to be street evangelists or be like Billy Graham. But it does mean that we are all called to share the good news of the Gospel, thereby glorifying God.
Member #4 yes
hungryforjesus Father God, I rebuke Satan’s attack on Member #5 in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and ask that you take any harmful thoughts out of her mind so she can focus on this study.
Member #6 yes Lord
hungryforjesus amen
Member #4 amen
Member #2 amen..AMEN
Member #4 please pray the same for me… the enemy is all over me
hungryforjesus Sense of Security: John 6:35 “Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty”.
Member #2 yes Member #4
Member #6 yes
hungryforjesus Lord Jesus, all powerful and mighty Son of God, you rebuked Satan in the desert and we ask that you do the same for everyone who came today.
Member #6 Holy God YES
Member #2 yes Lord
Member #4 yes Jesus
Member #6 AMEN
hungryforjesus When we believe in Jesus and go to Him, we will never be hungry or thirsty spiritually. He says NEVER! That’s hard for us to do, but that is His secure promise. That is a greatest sense of security.
Member #5 amen
Member #4 yes!
hungryforjesus On to the last one because I really want us to have time for the final exercise. Given what has happened with attacks today I think we need to do it for sure.
Member #6 YES
Member #4 agree
hungryforjesus Feeling of Worth: Ephesians 2:4-9 “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast”.
This talks again about the great love and mercy God has for us. We were dead in sin but He made us alive in Christ and that we will be seated with Jesus in the heavenly places. Wow! We are of such great value to God, He would give us this inheritance with Jesus! Once we are saved, nothing can change that. Jesus is the only WAY
Satan like to complicate it so our thinking is chaotic.
Member #4 yes indeed
Member #1 oh yeah, and he has awful ways of doing that…
Member #4 NODS
Member #2 agrees
Member #1 I must – have to- keep reminding myself of God’s word
Member #6 yes
hungryforjesus I hope some of the Scripture moved in you
Member #1 yes, I need reminded of His word, and that I am not the only one with these struggles…
Member #4 I love this scripture… I chose Ephesian 2:8,9 as my baptismal verses at age 13… but the verses before those 2 are what are really hitting me today!
hungryforjesus I’m so happy God is speaking to us today! Now …… Page 4 of 8, Item numbered 4. “Harmful Counterfeits To Jesus Filling Our Hungry Hearts” Say: The definition of counterfeit is “a fraudulent imitation of something else; a forgery”. So in this case, we are talking about some behavior, person or thing that we use instead of turning to Jesus for satisfying our heart hungers. Counterfeits may seem good for a while but they are not good or faithful. They can be harmful. Counterfeit money looks real but has no value. You may get into trouble using it. See what I mean?
Member #6 yes
Member #4 He seated us with Him …. so that in the coming ages… “He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace and kindness to ward us in Christ Jesus ”
Member #1 yup
hungryforjesus Thanks, Member #4. That a beautiful passage.
Here’s another important activity for you. On page 4 There is an image of a heart with Jesus at the centre. Imagine this is your heart. Not your physical heart, of course. The Hungers are listed next to it.
If you do not have a handout, draw a picture of a large heart with a cross in the centre
In the jigsaw pieces of the heart, write the counterfeits you are using to meet your deep hungers that you noted on page 2
What you are doing instead of turning to Jesus. Counterfeits can be an action, a person or a thing
Member #2 leaning on my own understanding
hungryforjesus What hunger is that meeting?
Member #2 security
Member #6 relates
hungryforjesus Okay – bj what are the negative outcomes of that?
Member #6 for me would be NOT depending on God
Member #5 mt mind governed by the flesh
hungryforjesus Thanks, Member #6
Member #2 fear ..stress.. anxiety
hungryforjesus Thanks, Member #2 Those are for sure not outcomes God desires for us. I relate!
Member #4 I have something kind of scary to share, hard to share
Member #6 ((((((Member #4)))))))))
hungryforjesus Member #4 – thanks. I’ll just ask Member #5 a question and then you can GA, okay?
Member #4 but it just occurred to me… since I’m thinking about “Action, Person, Thing”
hungryforjesus Member #5 – what is one deep hunger you identified on page 2 – which of the six do you feel deeply now?
Member #5 I was thinking also forgiveness
wroth being loved by my friends
hungryforjesus Member #5 – let’s take being loved. What are you doing instead of turning to Jesus who is your best friend. Something you are doing that is causing a negative outcome?
Member #5 sleep excessively or eat like junk foods or too much food I think
turn off
hungryforjesus Okay – thanks. So those are your counterfeit spiritual hunger satisfiers instead of turning to Jesus. I just wanted to walk out that flow with you. Thanks for sharing. It must be hard for you.
Member #2 ((Member #5))
Member #4 are you all staying? if yes… maybe I should push myself and just say it
Member #5 ga
Member #4 feeling sick to my stomach at the thought of it
Member #1 I’m here…
we won’t judge you…
Member #6 you are safe here Member #4
Member #4 I’m scared
I don’t know if this will come out right
but will try
crying now
you said counterfeits that replace turning to Jesus
I have several counterfeit behaviors… but they’re really minor… the one that is scaring me is a big one
that may or may not be true… just not sure
got that choas of thinking goin gon
I asked myself… what person (who is a counterfeit to Jesus) am I allowing into my heart to mess with my hunger needs?
when I believe LIES that go directly against God’s Word
when I allow those LIES against God’s truth
to control me
that allows the enemy to be my master
and not Jesus…
that just scared the daylights out of me to say that
the Bible says choose this day who you will serve…
or let me say that another way
WHO YOU WILL BELIEVE
this is what is hitting me
not too long ago
the Holy Spirit asked me a question rightwhen I was wking up
waking up
that’s when I’m the most receptive to God… early in the morning when it’s still and quet
quiet
it wasn’t a clear sentence… but it was something like
why do you choose to think (believe) things that aren’t true about me that scare you?
that was what the Holy Spirit put to me
and I was stunned
since that day
I’ve been breaking the habit ….
and I mean deep-seated HABIT
of allowing lies that generate terror and fear
to control me
Member #6 YES
to have AUTHORITY OVER ME
Jesus is the Only One who has rightful AUTHORITY OVER ME!!!
Member #6 amen
Member #4 and I am so thankful that this session included rebuking the enemy
the Bible tells us we cannot serve two masters
if I BELIEVE LIES… I am actively allowing… enabling the enmey of my soul
to be my master
THAT IS TERRIFYING TO ME
what I have allowed
and belive you me
that counterfeit
IS FULL OF HATE
and just wants me to continue to keep destroying myself
and NOT BELIEVE
God’s LIving Word and STAND on His Truths
does anything I”m saying make sense… or is my thinking messed up? I”ve never tried to put this into words with anyone before….
Member #6 it does make total sense
Member #2 yes it does ..thank you for being brave and sharing
Member #6 YES
Member #1 complete sense
hungryforjesus Our own flesh nature is a huge counterfeit. Satan, the world and our flesh nature are huge influences on our beliefs, thoughts and actions. And we know God does not give us a spirit of fear, terror, doubt, anxiety etc
Member #5 it does yeah
hungryforjesus Thank you Lord Jesus for the great breakthrough and sharing from Member #4 and others today!
Member #6 yes Lord
Member #1 Probably, as believers, this is one of our biggest battles, to not even listen to the lies of the devil…
Member #5 God is in controlhe’s greater
Member #6 yes
Member #1 I think despite all I know this is a huge struggle for me as well. We KNOW God is greater, but the devil seems to have a louder voice at times…
Member #4 nods
Member #5 true
giving him athority in our minds heartsor lives
hungryforjesus I think we underestimate our sin nature’s capacity to deceive us and make counterfeits looks shiny and soooo good
Member #4 thnx… there is NOTHING shiny or attractive about lies… yet that is the battle
Member #4 at least the lies I’ve fallen to tha tis
hungryforjesus Member #4 – are you feeling okay to carry on? We have one more piece to go before closing
Member #4 I’m okay… need to listen – thnx
hungryforjesus Wow, the Holy Spirit was moving here today. Let’s turn to page 6 in the worksheet now to start on committing to Jesus that we repent of our counterfeits and want to turn to him to meet our deep hungers
Member #6 YES
hungryforjesus This is not a mandatory format by any means. But it’s a start in linking all of what we talked about and felt today.
You would do it later, once you have a chance to meditate on what we said, perhaps re-read the material and Scriptures, and look at your deep hunger and repent of the counterfeits. I highly recommend that you complete this page or something like it.
Make a commitment to Jesus, who is the only true Satisfier of our deep hungers, to let Him have his rightful place in our hearts, minds and bodies.
What do you think of this idea to make a commitment?
Member #4 LOVE IT
Member #6 its good
Member #4 page 6 is awesome
Member #1 Excellent!
Member #2 agrees
Member #1 but scary
Member #2 yes for me too
Member #4 ditto
hungryforjesus Yes, scary. His power is made perfect in our weakness. When I am really scared, I repeat that many times. That His grace is sufficient for me.
Member #4 PTL
Member #1 Particularly when I’m scared I’ll fail… again
Member #4 relate/understand
hungryforjesus Surrendering is scary. Not leaning on our own understanding is against our nature. But this is where the spiritual growth comes from. Jesus does not view failure as we do. Let’s try to have the mind of Jesus when we do this.
Member #6 yes
Member #2 a bent reed He will not break
hungryforjesus That’s true bj!
Member #4 excellent … thnx for the clarification that Jesus does not view failure as we do
Member #6 STRENGTH in weakness
Member #2 yes and in coming together like in here
Member #4 YES
Member #1 true
hungryforjesus Any other thoughts before we close off? This sharing was more than i ever could have expected.God is so faithful. He is in control.
Member #6 wonderful workshop ty judy
Member #4 indeed!!! excellent worksheet
Member #1 Thank you… I needed to be reminded and encouraged in these truths, and to take action…
Member #4 ditto
Member #1 Thanks for the AMAZING worksheet
Member #5 thank you for this workshop Judy
Member #2 yes ..a great gift
hungryforjesus I am just the servant. God is the master of this. May I close off with a prayer I found yesterday that seems perfect for this?
Our God, we hunger and thirst in ways we do not fully understand. When our stomachs growl, we eat bread and it stops. But within our souls, we have a deep hunger and we do not ever fully know how to make the pangs go away. Forgive us when we look to satisfy our hunger in ways that do not satisfy – in wealth, in wine, in all the false gods we surround ourselves with. Today let us eat the bread of life and be satisfied.
Member #6 yes Lord God
Member #4 let us trust You Jesus with our hunger for answers to our questions
Member #5 forgive me Lord
Member #6 Beautiful Saviour
Member #1 Give me a heart of action to do what pleases you and not me…
Member #5 for my slothfulness, and counterfeit gods Lord
Member #6 free us from the spirit of reject ion
Member #4 free us from self destructive behaviors Lord Jesus
Member #5 help us lean on you Lord not on ourselves
please strnegthen us all here in your love
Member #6 Perfect Love
hungryforjesus Thank you Holy Spirit for this outpouring of praise and repentance.
Member #5 you are the way truth and life Jesus
Member #4 just to see Your face, Jesus… and know You as You are .. the great I AM
Member #6 YES
Member #5 help us run to you and be find you are all we need
hungryforjesus He stands at the door and knocks. And whoever lets Him in, He will dine with us. Revelation 3:20.
Member #1 Yes
Member #5 that you give us our daily bread and eat food that satisfies from every work=d that comes from your mouth Lord God word
Member #6 we love You Lord who first loved us
Member #5 thank you you are far greater than any finite being who tried o lie or deceive us
Member #4 thank you Jesus for giving us your promise… after we have been tried, we shall come forth as Gold… by Your Mighty Hand, Our Loving Maker!
hungryforjesus Lord, even the wind and the waves obey you. Surely nothing is too hard for You. No counterfeit is too powerful that you cannot overcome it.
Member #6 AMEN
Member #1 Yes Lord.. Amen!
hungryforjesus Amen