I Love Heartburn

It may very well be one of the most wonderful walks ever… the walk on the road to

Emmaus. Two believers that had been a part of the ministry of Jesus, and fully expected Him to

rescue them, became confused when Jesus died on the cross and was buried. Three

days later, when they heard that the tomb was empty- and the body of Jesus was

missing, they lost all hope. Their hearts were broken.

They began walking toward the village of Emmaus. They were heading the wrong

direction - walking away from believing - taking sadness, despair, and disappointment

with them. As they walked and talked along the road, they began to try to reason out in

their minds and in their conversations what had gone wrong.

Then, something life-changing happened. A stranger began to walk with them. The

stranger listened as they shared the events of their story of Jesus’ arrest, crucifixion,

burial, the empty tomb - from beginning to end - about how they had counted on Jesus

to save them - but it hadn’t happened.

As evening fell, they stopped walking and invited the stranger to stay with them, still

unaware that it was Jesus who had joined them on their walk. As they sat to eat, Jesus

took the bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them. What happened next?

Luke 24:31-32 tells us: Their eyes were opened. They knew Him. They then

recognized that it was Jesus they had found along the road- or better yet, Jesus had

found them. He then vanished out of their sight. Realizing what had just taken place, the

two believers, no doubt shook their heads in disbelief and looked at each other with

excitement as they said, “Didn’t our hearts burn within us, while He talked with us along

the way, and while He opened up the scripture to us?”

Yes, they were feeling the burn. The greatest case of heartburn ever. A fire had been

ignited and was burning in their hearts and souls.

That’s the heartburn I want. Such an intense burn that I just look at my friends, shaking

my head in amazement - with that ‘deer in headlights’ look in my eyes - unable to

contain the magnificent truth about the change in my heart that my Lord and Savior-

Jesus Christ- has brought about!

This story shows the steps from heartbreak to heartburn - steps that still work today:

*Let our eyes be opened.

*Know Jesus.

*Talk with Jesus along the way.

*Let Jesus open up the scripture to us.

One walk. From heartbreak to heartburn. Good stuff. God stuff