All the days of the afflicted are evil, but he who is of a merry heart has a continual feast. Proverbs 15:15
God established feast days for the children of Israel; times that were set aside each year to commemorate and to celebrate certain events in the lives of the Jews, some things past and some present, but all a shadow of that which was to come. Then, we see throughout the Word of God people feasting and celebrating together with food. It seems like any time there is something to celebrate (or even if there isn’t!) there is almost always food involved.
Jesus used food in many of His parables. He taught about banquets and how you should choose your seat carefully when you are invited to one, He taught about a banquet being prepared by the master and invitations being sent out but declined for various reasons. He taught about feasts being called when things that were lost were found and when those who were lost were restored.
Often, we find the Lord being at events that included food. His first public miracle was at a wedding feast. Several times it is recorded that He accepted invitations to dine at people’s houses. Every way you turn you see feasts and banquets. But, all of these events were just that — events. The feast came and went and afterwards the participants resumed their normal life. These were extraordinary times that they got to enjoy on occasion but they were not a part of their everyday way of life.
In our verse today, we find there is the potential for our heart to have a continual feast. That is to say, you can enjoy in your heart all of the blessings of a feast (without the inconvenient addition of calories!). Every day, continually, your heart can be filled with joy and your mouth with praise. But, how can you have something to continually celebrate or commemorate? It is as if you are feasting on the goodness of God, which knows no bounds!
How do you get invited to this continual feast? You already have been invited by Jesus; all you have to do is accept His invitation to come to Him and find rest, peace and joy in His presence. The key is to have a “merry heart”. That word for merry means good in a very broad sense. When you put your heart into God’s hands and allow Him to fill it with good things, then you are feasting on His goodness.
Bitterness, unforgiveness and anger are a few examples of things that can keep you from having a merry heart but, like all of the other things that are not of the Lord, these are all choices. If you find anything dwelling in your heart and mind that you realize is not from the Lord, you can decide that it’s time for a change in your life. You do not have to wait for circumstances or people to change; you can be feasting on God’s goodness even if everyone around you chooses otherwise. You may be in circumstances that are not good, but that does not prevent you from feasting on the goodness of God even in the midst of them.
Those feast days came around every so often, and you get to enjoy days of celebrating with food and feasting. But, because of God’s goodness, your heart can have a continual feast!
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