Did Jesus have a belly?

We live in world consumed with weight and waistlines.  Magazines, commercials, and billboards are quick to let us know that who we are is not enough.  We must be healthier, thinner, and stronger.  We must look younger, toned, and fit.  We must, we must, we must be something more. 

Has this always been the case?  Was how you looked that important in Jesus’s day?  Were Martha and Mary constantly sizing one another up wondering who looked better that day?  Regardless of the struggles then, I think our hearts have always been the same.  We want to fit in, we want to belong, and we want people to like us. 

I don’t know if Jesus had a belly.  My natural assumption is to think He was the fittest man to ever live (being perfect and all).  What I do know is Jesus lived life to the fullest yet with great wisdom and discipline.  He knew how to respect His body and at the same time knew how to enjoy Himself.  How do I know this?  His first miracle was turning water into wine at the point in the party when most of the guests were already too drunk to enjoy it.  Man, I bet that was some good wine!

Jesus knew who He was and who He wasn’t and because of that He lived in complete freedom.  He lived free of the opinion of the others and acted from the command of one voice, His Father’s. 

For many of us, this freedom is what we long for, dream about, and hope to one day live from.  We want to be confident in who we are, who we are not, and because of this walk in confidence. 

I would have hated to been the guy/girl at the party who missed Jesus’s first miracle (and some great wine) because I was consumed with what others thought of me, and therefore probably drunk. 

I wonder what times in my life I have missed a miracle because I was too pre-occupied with what someone else thought of me? 

It scares me to think about it, but I am praying that my motives would be different and my guess is your hope is the same.  

So, grab a glass of wine and let's toast!  A toast to freedom.  Freedom in knowing who God says we are, and not to what the world says we should be.   Freedom to walk in this confidence, always ready to drink His best wine!

And on another note, what do think?  Did Jesus have a belly - even just a little one?! :)