King David's son, who ruled in Jerusalem wrote of the true meaning of life in Ecclesiastes. He says, "Humans are always looking for ways to be more than or other than what we find ourselves to be. We explore the country side for excitement, search our souls for meaning, shop the world for pleasure. Everything we try is so promising at first! But nothing ever seems to amount to very much. We intensify our efforts, but the hard we work at it, the less we get out of it. Some people give up early and settle for a humdrum life. Others never seem to learn, and so they flail away through a lifetime, becoming less and less human by the year, until by the time they die there is hardly enough humanity left to compose a corpse."
We spend our lives planning our next steps, searching for ways to make us happy, when all we need to find true satisfaction is to seek God.
I think there are 3 main areas we look for satisfaction. Those are people, jobs, and "stuff". Each of these may fill time or the void inside us for a moment, but they never leave you 100% satisfied. There's a saying, "Worrying is like rocking in a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but doesn't get you anywhere."
The first area many look for satisfaction from is people-friends, family, significant others, and professionals (therapists, leaders in church, career counselors, life coaches, or maybe even "self-help" books). If you find that you need to be around a group of people to feel good, secure, or happy and fulfilled, you may be looking for satisfaction in the wrong place. Where do you go for advice? Do you get on your knees when you need help, or do you first go through a list of people whom you respect their advice? Is God first or last? 1 Corinthians 2:4-5 says, "My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power."
I love this snipped from Lisa Bevere's book 'Fight Like A Girl'. "...We elevate man to the god-level..when we mistakenly believe people are the source of security and promotion. This could happen when we expect friends to meet all our emotional and supportive needs."
Sure, God placed loved ones in our lives to make them fuller and happier. In fact, God created Eve for Adam as a helpmate, someone to connect with him, love him, and be happy with him. The problem comes when we seek PEOPLE over GOD to make us WHOLE.
The second area many people look for satisfaction is work (accomplishments, money, impressing employers and co-workers). Ecclesiastes 1:3 says, "What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?" This doesn't mean we aren't to work hard and take pride in our work. The God of heaven and earth worked extremely hard-then rested. Can you imagine how much work it would be to create all the stars in the sky, the fish in the sea, the birds in the air, and the humans that walk our earth, yet even God rested. God wants us to work hard, and delight in our work, but not to become so deep in our work that we forget that HE is our provider, HE is our satisfaction. Have you ever noticed that workaholics and those with the "I just have to keep climbing the corporate ladder" mindset believe nothing is ever enough? They're never satisfied with one pay-raise. They're not happy with one promotion; they always search for more. Humans were made to always want more. We're never satisfied with worldly things, and that's exactly how it should be! We're not living this life to get a great job, build our dream home, and save thousands of dollars for no purpose. We're meant to run the race, to seek after God, and to finish by hearing, "Well done, good and faithful servant."
The other area I believe people look to satisfy them is with "stuff". Lots and lots of stuff. This means cars, boats, houses, gadgets, and vacations. Ecclesiastes 4 talks about how David's son did all these great things, built this, grew that, went here, bought this..but it all meant nothing! I believe God can certainly bless us with all of these things. But I don't believe they're ever supposed to take the place of our satisfaction in Him! You never hear someone with 3 houses, a handful or cars, and all the newest gadgets say they're completely content and happy with their possessions. They always want more. There's a reason why the idea of "keeping up with the Joneses" has stuck around forever. We are always trying to compete with our neighbors, co-workers, friends, and even family. Think about cell phones and computers. We all want the latest and greatest models. Talks of a new iPhone has people going crazy! People drop $$$ on a phone or computer, walk straight out of the store, and the minute something newer comes out it seems worthless and no longer good enough for us. Think about a new car. The minute you drive it off the lot it's value immediately depreciates! Sickening!
Now, I'm not saying any of these things are bad. I certainly love those closest to me in life! I don't have a paying job, but I count my job as a mother and wife to be an important one that I constantly work out. And I love my home, the vacations we get to go on, and the "stuff" my house is filled with. However, I know none of these things can satisfy me the way my God does. None of these areas are bad, but they shouldn't be our source of satisfaction and fulfilment. The only TRUE satisfaction we can find is in a relationship with Jesus! I'm thankful that he created me to desire more than what this world can offer.
We spend our lives planning our next steps, searching for ways to make us happy, when all we need to find true satisfaction is to seek God.
I think there are 3 main areas we look for satisfaction. Those are people, jobs, and "stuff". Each of these may fill time or the void inside us for a moment, but they never leave you 100% satisfied. There's a saying, "Worrying is like rocking in a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but doesn't get you anywhere."
The first area many look for satisfaction from is people-friends, family, significant others, and professionals (therapists, leaders in church, career counselors, life coaches, or maybe even "self-help" books). If you find that you need to be around a group of people to feel good, secure, or happy and fulfilled, you may be looking for satisfaction in the wrong place. Where do you go for advice? Do you get on your knees when you need help, or do you first go through a list of people whom you respect their advice? Is God first or last? 1 Corinthians 2:4-5 says, "My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power."
I love this snipped from Lisa Bevere's book 'Fight Like A Girl'. "...We elevate man to the god-level..when we mistakenly believe people are the source of security and promotion. This could happen when we expect friends to meet all our emotional and supportive needs."
Sure, God placed loved ones in our lives to make them fuller and happier. In fact, God created Eve for Adam as a helpmate, someone to connect with him, love him, and be happy with him. The problem comes when we seek PEOPLE over GOD to make us WHOLE.
The second area many people look for satisfaction is work (accomplishments, money, impressing employers and co-workers). Ecclesiastes 1:3 says, "What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?" This doesn't mean we aren't to work hard and take pride in our work. The God of heaven and earth worked extremely hard-then rested. Can you imagine how much work it would be to create all the stars in the sky, the fish in the sea, the birds in the air, and the humans that walk our earth, yet even God rested. God wants us to work hard, and delight in our work, but not to become so deep in our work that we forget that HE is our provider, HE is our satisfaction. Have you ever noticed that workaholics and those with the "I just have to keep climbing the corporate ladder" mindset believe nothing is ever enough? They're never satisfied with one pay-raise. They're not happy with one promotion; they always search for more. Humans were made to always want more. We're never satisfied with worldly things, and that's exactly how it should be! We're not living this life to get a great job, build our dream home, and save thousands of dollars for no purpose. We're meant to run the race, to seek after God, and to finish by hearing, "Well done, good and faithful servant."
The other area I believe people look to satisfy them is with "stuff". Lots and lots of stuff. This means cars, boats, houses, gadgets, and vacations. Ecclesiastes 4 talks about how David's son did all these great things, built this, grew that, went here, bought this..but it all meant nothing! I believe God can certainly bless us with all of these things. But I don't believe they're ever supposed to take the place of our satisfaction in Him! You never hear someone with 3 houses, a handful or cars, and all the newest gadgets say they're completely content and happy with their possessions. They always want more. There's a reason why the idea of "keeping up with the Joneses" has stuck around forever. We are always trying to compete with our neighbors, co-workers, friends, and even family. Think about cell phones and computers. We all want the latest and greatest models. Talks of a new iPhone has people going crazy! People drop $$$ on a phone or computer, walk straight out of the store, and the minute something newer comes out it seems worthless and no longer good enough for us. Think about a new car. The minute you drive it off the lot it's value immediately depreciates! Sickening!
Now, I'm not saying any of these things are bad. I certainly love those closest to me in life! I don't have a paying job, but I count my job as a mother and wife to be an important one that I constantly work out. And I love my home, the vacations we get to go on, and the "stuff" my house is filled with. However, I know none of these things can satisfy me the way my God does. None of these areas are bad, but they shouldn't be our source of satisfaction and fulfilment. The only TRUE satisfaction we can find is in a relationship with Jesus! I'm thankful that he created me to desire more than what this world can offer.
Comments
Post a Comment