Being Truly Satisfied
I’ve always heard it said that the attainment of earthly pursuits never truly satisfies, that no matter how rich you get, the riches can’t satiate the hunger that’s deep inside. Well, I’ve agreed and said same to others but you know what, I’ve never had ‘more than enough’ money, so I can’t say I’ve spoken from an experiential knowing.
Yesterday, though, I got a taste of that emptiness that comes after reaching a goal that is shallow.
I played monopoly on my daughter’s iPod…..fantastic fun!! The first round, I lost to the contraption but the second time around, I started off strong and at a point, I was trashing my opponent…..despite the fact that it was a non-living one, I can’t describe the glee I felt. Finally, after building hotels and watching my opponent slowly drift into bankruptcy while my empire grew, the end was upon me…..the ‘dog’ crumpled and to the board (virtual, of course) and I (the car) jubilated with dollar notes raining down on me. After the initial elation that I’d won, I was left feeling empty and wondering, “So, is that it?”
That was a real light-bulb moment for me as, in a little, virtual way, I’d seen that the thrill is really in the pursuit but the acquisition doesn’t satisfy deep within. So in order to keep feeling the thrill, we need to go from pursuing one goal to pursuing another; for guys who are not focused, from one skirt to another; from one job to another;……it never really ends because we always find that none of it ever really ‘hits the spot’. It’s like the way we feel thirsty and we keep trying to satisfy it with soda, juice, anything but plain water and (surprise, surprise) we still feel thirsty. Only good old H2O (water, for the less scientific-minded….lol) can hit that spot and quench the thirst.
Well, there’s just such a hunger and thirst in each and every human being on the face of the earth. We keep trying to satisfy it with all sorts of pursuits, people, possessions, popularity, etc. but we are never truly satisfied. The ONLY thing that TRULY satisfies is the LIVING WATER, who is also the BREAD OF LIFE……Jesus Christ. I can’t explain how He does it, but when He is invited to come into one’s life, He just fills them up.
Jesus answered, “If you knew the generosity of God and who I am, you would be asking me for a drink, and I would give you fresh, living water.” The woman said, “Sir, you don’t even have a bucket to draw with, and this well is deep. So how are you going to get this ‘living water’? Are you a better man than our ancestor Jacob, who dug this well and drank from it, he and his sons and livestock, and passed it down to us?” Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life.” [John 4:10-14, MSG]
Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
“Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.” Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. [John 6:32-35, NIV]
Sometimes, when we choose to compartmentalize Him in our lives, we lose out on the satisfaction He gives and begin to experience levels of hunger and thirst; if we’re not careful, we can then get caught up in the ‘rat race’ aimed at trying to satisfy ourselves…..it’ll never work. A truly satisfied soul is a truly submitted one. Selah!
Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ [Matthew 22:37, NLT]
My recommendation: Submit to His Lordship COMPLETELY – emotions, will, thoughts, plans, relationships, marriages, careers; past, present and future.
“So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.” [Colossians 3:1-2, MSG]
Just give it a try and see if He won’t satisfy 😉