Honey in the Rock

Written by Olivia - Serving in Northern Ireland

When I think of the word pure, the first thing that pops into my mind recently is honey. Honey, in its very form, is a pure, natural substance. Bees produce this sweet and sticky substance and store the honey in honeycombs to nourish their colonies. Honey has now become a part of the human food system. We use honey for lots of things. It can be used as a sweetener, to heal cuts and wounds, to soothe a sore throat, and is a powerful antioxidant. Between all of these uses, it seems as if there is one overarching thing in common: honey, in its purity, provides nourishment. 

Purity and nourishment have been the themes of my first week in Belfast as I work with The Gathering Church. There is a kind of genuineness within the believing community of East Belfast and The Gathering that is extremely rare to find. The people that I am working with are some of the most genuine people I have ever met. They hold a deep love for their community and are rooted and grounded in Christ’s love. 

One of my favorite songs is “Pure” by Abbie Gamboa. In this song, Abbie talks about having a desire for her worship to be pure, to simply honor God and bring Him praise in all that she does. This pure adoration for Christ is something that I have consistently prayed for and have tried to embody in my life. As I have gotten to know the people of The Gathering, I can honestly say that what they each possess is a pure, genuine, and nourishing faith in Christ. They seek to honor God in all they do. This rare type of faith and relationship with God is like honey. It is sweet. It is pure. It is genuine. It is nourishing to the soul. 

In Psalm 81, the psalmist writes about Israel’s relationship with the Lord. He reminds them that God is the One who delivered them out of Egypt, yet they choose to turn away from Him. God was ready to fill, to nourish His people, yet tragically, they were unwilling to obey His commands. Even though God had claimed His people as His own, they did not trust in His provision. The last verse of the psalm states, “... and with honey from the rock I would have satisfied you.” (Psalm 81:16b) God is the One who satisfies us. If we are willing to let Him, He will richly nourish us with His love and joy. 

The people of The Gathering have tasted and seen the goodness of God. They have seen His provision and they have trusted in His ways. They have a willingness and a hunger to know God and to know Him deeply. They have already impacted me greatly, encouraging me to continue striving towards pure worship and a genuine relationship with Christ, a relationship that is like a land overflowing with milk and honey, pure and nourishing to the soul.