SATISFACTION



God has created a big, beautiful world with so many wonderful things in it and yet those things, as fulfilling as they may seem, do not ultimately satisfy the deep hunger in our hearts.  Why is that? Long ago, Solomon wrote some of the most thought provoking words recorded in the Old Testament.  In Ecclesiastes 3:11 he observed, “God has made everything beautiful in its time.  He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”

Solomon had so much! The preceding verse demonstrates how a man who was created in the image of God comprehends how God accomplishes his plan and purposes in his time.  It seems Solomon is settled upon the sovereignty of God.  But yet, there was a restlessness and a longing deep within his soul that all of those pleasures couldn't satisfy! “Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 2:11) Incredible!

What was Solomon talking about? The Bible, as stated by Solomon, concludes that the problem stems from the fact that God has planted eternity in the human heart.  In other words, that deep hunger and thirst within us is spiritual in nature — not material!  Consequently, no matter how much we acquire, it's never enough!  No matter where we're standing in life, it always seems like the grass is greener somewhere else!  Isn't it strange that we amass our fortunes and accumulate our stuff, take exotic vacations, purchase expensive toys, take up new vocations, move from career to career, bounce from relationship to relationship, and yet, we're never satisfied!?  Our longing for fulfillment remains to be satisfied. 

Solomon speaks from experience!  He was upholding faith in God, not faith in faith or pie in the sky. Faith is only as good as the object of faith, and the greatest object of faith is the Lord. The hunger and thirst of the human heart can be satisfied according to Jesus; “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” (Matthew 5:6) Happy and satisfied are the paired outcomes righteousness injects into your heart. This is what your heart was designed to long for.

It may surprise you to learn that the Bible never encourages us to seek happiness as an end in itself.  According to Jesus, happiness is by-product of seeking God's kingdom way of life—trusting Him! The deep and abiding satisfaction that our hearts hunger and thirst for cannot be found in the pleasures, or the promises, or the acclaim the world offers.  Just ask Solomon.  That deep and abiding satisfaction that our hearts yearn for comes only from God. God promises to give it to you when your passion in life is to know and serve Him!

Comments

  1. DiwakarApril 8, 2017 at 12:04 AM

    Hello Pastor. I am also a Pastor from Mumbai, india. I am glad to stop by your proifle on the blogger and the blog post. I am blessed and encouraged by your post on Satisfaction. I am also blessed and feel privileged and honored to get connected with you as well as know you as a Pastor. I love getting connected with the people of God around the globe to be encouraged, stengthened and praying for one another. I have been in the Pastoral minsitry for last 37 yrs in this great city of Mumbai a city with a great contrast where richest of rich and the poorest of poor live. we reachout to the poorest of poor with the love of Christ to bring healing to the borkenhearted. We also encouraege young and the adults from the west to come to Mumbai to work with us during their vacation time. We would love to have young people from your church to come to Mumbai to work with us during their vacation time. I am sure they will have a life chaning experience. God willing I will be coming to the UNITED States in the month of MAY and will be so glad to stop by your place and meet with you to share more about our ministry to the poorest of poor. Looking foward to hear from you very soon. God's richest blessings on you, your family and ministry. My eamil id is: dhwankhede(at)gmaildot)com and my name is Diwakar Wankhede

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