January 17

NT – I read the passage about Jesus and the disciples eating heads of grain in the field. All I could think about was the time we were supposed to be picking sweet corn and sat down in the field and ate an ear straight off the stalk. It probably was a dare from someone. My stomach has never hurt that badly before or since. The after effects were particularly bad as well.
I decided to look up eating raw grains and what I found surprised me. There is a whole community of folks who eat raw grains. It is called ‘eating raw’ and they cook none of their foods. They do this in an attempt to maximize the nutrient benefit of the fruits, vegetable, nuts and grains. Most of the websites suggested sprouting the wheat before eating it. In Los Angeles, there are even restaurants (are you surprised?) that cater to the ‘raw food’s crowd’.
Planet Raw
This website was wholeheartedly against it. “Completely raw wheat can be dangerous. It swells in the stomach and can lead to bowel obstructions. An overnight soak should fix that. There's also some concern that the phytate in raw wheat can reduce vitamin absorption, but again, soaking seems to fix that…Corn and rice are particularly problematic. Quinoa and barley contain bitter toxins that make them very unpalatable raw (and dangerous if you could choke down enough of them).” Askville

Which brings me back to Jesus and the disciples eating the grain heads. They must have been so incredibly hungry to even consider eating the grain, much less picking it on the Sabbath. They certainly knew better. But they were walking somewhere anyway so I guess they were really intent on breaking the Sabbath. They should have been safely in someone’s home that Sabbath. Who was supposed to extend hospitality and didn’t?

Another intriguing phrase for me tonight was the ‘foot stumble’ in Proverbs. We seem to hear that a lot. This also surprised me. I just assumed that if you went everywhere on your feet, you surely wouldn’t want to have a sprain or, God forbid, a break. You might never recover. However, my Harper’s Bible Dictionary says that is really not what is meant at all. In Hebrew, the word foot is often a euphemism for the male genitalia. “Foot stumbling” is a euphemism for adultery. It gives that Proverb a whole new meaning.

Keep reading! I am proud of all the work you are doing. I have already learned so much and I hope that you have as well.