Our family went on a cruise during Christmas break. It was a first for Amy and the boys so there was a lot for them to experience. There’s the whole big boat thing. The being out in the middle of the ocean thing. The barrage of entertainment thing. And of course, the soaking up the rays on a Caribbean beach while it was freezing back home thing. But guess what Blake and Jeb’s favorite part of the entire cruise was? Yep! The food. And especially the dinner thing!

Our first evening at dinner, we were introduced to our wait staff and the menu was placed in front of us. Our waitress began by asking Blake and Jeb what they would have for an appetizer. They straightaway responded, “No, thank you.” Clearly, appetizers are not a usual part of our eating out experience unless it’s the free chips and hot sauce or the complimentary bread. So, the waitress had to explain to them that they could order as much food as they wanted. It was all inclusive and everything had already been paid for. Well, that’s all they needed to hear. By the end of the cruise, they were ordering 2 or 3 appetizers with each meal, steak and shrimp for every main course and on the last evening, the wait staff brought them two desserts without even asking!

That’s exactly what God wants for us in our prayer life. We often by-pass the appetizers, skimp on the main course and forego dessert. We tend to settle for a bologna sandwich when God wants us to feast on steak and shrimp! It’s all inclusive. Jesus paid for it all.  As the writer of Hebrews says, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus”.  (Hebrews 10:19 – New Living Translation)

So, dig in. Take your prayer life deeper. Move on from the bologna sandwich. Put down the chips and salsa and enjoy the steak and shrimp!