Locusts and Wild Honey | Anita Mathias: Dreaming Beneath the Spires

Mark 1 4-5
And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. ⁶ John wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey.

It was the chairos time, the right time for John the Baptist to emerge to public notice, with an urgent message, which had to be shared. And so, despite everything against him, he spoke his message of hope. He was outspoken, to the point that he lost his life for telling the truth about those in power.

Would the wilderness–solitude, no human companionship

none of the works of art, civilization, learning, the absence of

iron sharpening iron, an absence of everything but you and

God–be considered a suitable training ground for the

development of a unique voice, which has something real,

and of urgency to say to the world?

Apparently, it was. Because he was flowing with God’s purposes, and God’s spirit was on him, what he said–repent, and you will be forgiven, someone greater than me is coming–was spot on, and spoke to the people.

And look at his diet. Locusts and wild honey. Protein and natural sugars. Not balanced. But that did not prevent his fulfilling God’s call on his life.

Sometimes, one needs to clear the decks to do what God has called us to do. To go into the desert, figuratively speaking, into silence, solitude and quietness.

To simplify one’s meals and cooking to clear time and space to hear God and to do what he has called you to do.

I am not going to go on a locust and wild honey diet, but I am going to try to eat very simply for a while–partly to lose weight and be fitter, but also to create time and space to hear the word of God more clearly.

Locusts and wild honey–simple food for a season to be able to hear and speak words from God more clearly.