How would you imagine your perfect life? Big house, lots of
toys, CEO, party central, amazing spouse? What are the attributes of that life?
Adventure, meaning, security? What dreams do you want to come true? We all have
things deep down inside that we desire and long for, and the reality is we all
want the same thing. If you take all the questions above and boil them down to their
roots I believe you come up with two desires: life and love.
Life and love. Life – we want fullness, energy, purpose,
good-will, etc. Whether our dream is to be a school teacher, president of the
United States, astronaut, or missionary we are trying to satisfy our desire for
life. Love – we want meaning, approval, intimacy, safety. We want this
unexplainable heart-felt goodness from another and we want to give it back.
This isn’t necessarily only in a husband-spouse relationship, but in any
relationship. Not even the most introverted person in the world would want to
be completely alone forever; everybody wants community. So the real question
comes down to this: how do we satisfy these desires?
So the other night I
got home with some time to spare on a Friday night (fancy way to say I had no
plans) and I had the opportunity to go spend some quality time with Jesus but
instead I decided that since I worked hard all week that I deserved a little me
time and plopped on the couch and spent some quality time with Netflix. I
watched one episode of Agents of Shield (great show btw). It was so good that I
couldn’t help but watch another. I scrolled through Facebook a little bit and
hope was just welling up in me about how good the next episode would be so I watched
another. Looked at Facebook a little more. Still had this need to watch a 4th
episode so I did. I scrolled aimlessly through Facebook AGAIN and although I
longed to watch a 5th episode somewhere inside I mustered up enough
self-control to call it quits and went to bed.
Now after you finish judging me/finish doing the same thing
I want you to think about something, did I go to bed satisfied? Did Netflix and
Facebook satisfy my desires for life and love? I kept going back for more
didn’t I? I just couldn’t get enough! But, the reality is that I couldn’t get
enough because I was never satisfied. I kept going back hoping for satisfaction.
One episode (which was a great episode) just didn’t satisfy my deepest desires,
so maybe another one. The second didn’t? Well maybe a third, a fourth… I scroll
through Facebook but really what am I looking for? To find a fun article? To
see how other people’s lives are treating them? To see how much more/less
satisfied other people are than I am? Netflix, Facebook – I had hope that they
could satisfy but in reality they are empty. So as I lay in bed unsatisfied I
thought about what makes me satisfied.
Aggie football. Of all
things Aggie football must satisfy me. The term “bleed maroon” is an
understatement for me. Standing up in Kyle Field waving my flag screaming my
head off with 100,000 others must satisfy my desire for life and love. But then
we throw a pick, we get behind, make poor play calls, people start leaving the
game early, and we lose, or I mean “run out of time”. I’m disappointed,
frustrated, still committed and in “love” with Aggie football, but in the
moment unsatisfied. Even when we win I do carry a sense of joy but it only
temporarily lasts. So I began to think through everything in my life that may
satisfy and there is only one thing that every time, consistently satisfies me.
His name is Jesus.
When I learn about His goodness, talk with Him about the
world, worship Him, His presence does something different in my soul that
nothing else has ever compared to. I get this stirring, warmth, joy that wells
up inside. When I worship, especially with others, His presence overwhelms me
with something that can be found nowhere else and it’s satisfaction.
The satisfaction that is found in Jesus is also
ever-increasing. The more I learn about His goodness, the more I understand who
He is, the closer I get to Him – the more satisfied I become. You see with the
Netflix example I kept going back from lack of satisfaction because I left each
time feeling disappointed, with Jesus I go back every time because I’m blown
away with the revelation that “whoa! He really is that good! He really does
satisfy!”
What’s even more mind blowing is that God can satisfy in
every situation. He doesn’t only satisfy when I’m worshiping at church, He
satisfies in every situation that I let Him in on. He can satisfy when I’m at
work. He can satisfy when I’m cleaning my room. He can satisfy when I’m hunting
or playing golf. To be honest, for a while I really didn’t like living in Fort
Worth. I had thought about trying to move to a place that I thought I would
better satisfy me such as Denver, Orlando, etc, but when 2016 started I decided
to trust that God put me here for a reason (he kept telling me to stay here
when I would pray) and that His plan was better than mine and I began to thank
Him for being in Fort Worth. The more I thanked Him and the more I let go of
certain desires and trusted them in His hands the more I was filled with life,
hope, joy. I got out of the way and allowed God’s satisfaction to come in. I
love it here, but it’s not because I’m in Fort Worth but it’s because this is
where God wants me to be.
Satisfaction is not dependent on your circumstances but rather on your acknowledgement of God.
What’s even more important that it’s not “Jesus things” that
satisfy but Jesus himself. There are a lot of people who show up to church on
Sunday and leave unsatisfied. There are ton’s of people who are not excited
about spending time with Jesus. Their focus on Jesus related things fills their
soil with rocks and thorns and get burnt out, but those who focus on Jesus
Himself will be satisfied. Everybody wants this whether they realize it or not.
The only reason people don’t want Jesus is because they don’t know Him. “Jesus
answered, ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever
drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Instead, the water I give him
will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’” – John
4:13-14
The reality is, I can sit here all day and tell you about
how much God can satisfy, but it does no good if you leave from reading this
and don’t go sit in His presence. Think about your life. Think about the things
you do and if they completely satisfy. I’m not saying desert everything you do
(it’s ok to watch some Netflix to an extent), but what I am saying is don’t
waste your time draining yourself and not filling yourself with Jesus. “Taste
and see that the Lord is good” – Psalms 34:8a
