“O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”
Psalms 63:1 (NIV)
There has to be more to life than this. I’m sure you have thought that before. I know I have. Deep down, I believe that we all have a desire for something more than the normal, everyday life. We are seeking something more out of life than just the “same ole, same ole.” Sometimes life seems so pointless and we feel insignificant. We wonder why we are even here on this lonely planet called Earth. Do we even have a purpose? We see other people whose dreams are constantly coming true and we wonder, “Why can’t that be me?” There are times when it seems no one even cares about what is going on in our lives. We are searching for meaning and significance. We are searching for someone to love us for who we truly are and not the façade we put on when we go out of the house. We seek to be ourselves, in private and public, but we are afraid that people would never accept us if they saw the real person behind the mask.
We have all felt this way at some point or another. Some feel it more than others. There are people who try to downplay the emotions and feelings going on behind the scenes when someone is searching for their place in this world, but the fact remains that sometimes it hurts. We were all born with a “God-shaped hole” in our lives. Nothing and no one but God can fill that hole, but there are many times when we try to fill it with so many things such as, friends, family, church activities, drugs, alcohol, popularity, sports, and the list goes on. But no matter how hard we try to fit these things into that hole in our lives, they just will not fit, because that hole is not meant for them, it is meant only for God. When we constantly try to fill this hole with other things, we may feel a temporary relief, but that will soon be overtaken by emptiness.
Can there be any hope in this emptiness? The answer is an adamant YES! As we see in Matthew 7:7- “Seek and you will find.” If you are searching for something more out of life, then I can assure you that, if you look to God, you will not be disappointed. When you seek Him, you will find Him. It does not say that you may find Him, but that you will find Him. When you meet this God we read about in the Bible, your life will never be the same. There is no way that you can have an encounter with the living God, and come away the same person. You will have a new perspective on everything. Your life will be different. You may be saying, “Well, I like my life the way it is. Why would I want to change?” Do you honestly like the way you feel? Do you like the emptiness you feel once the temporary pleasure is gone? Are you willing to suffer eternally because you would rather enjoy temporary pleasure? There will definitely be a change in your life, but isn’t that really what you want? When Isaiah had an encounter with God in Isaiah 6, we see that he stood in awe of God’s majesty and once Isaiah saw God for who He truly was, Isaiah found his purpose in life. God called Isaiah to be a prophet to the children of
If you are searching for significance and your purpose in life, I will suggest this to you: seek the God who created you. He knows you better than anyone else. He knows you better than you know yourself. Psalms 139:13 says, “You made my whole being; you formed me in my mother’s body.” God made us just the way we are for a reason. When He was forming us in our mother’s body, He instilled within us the talents and interests we have for a reason. Many times, the talents and desires you have inside are things that God will use as part of your ministry and purpose in life. There are people who have a talent and love of singing. Some love speaking in front of large groups of people. Some love sports. All these things can be used by God to reach other people for His glory. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “I say this because I know what I am planning for you’ says the Lord. ‘I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future.” God has a reason for you to be here. He did not create you just to take up space. He wants to use you to reach others and to make an impact on everyone with whom you come in contact. You can make a difference in someone else’s life. You will never find true significance and purpose in anything or anyone else, but God! Jesus said, “I am come that they may have life, and that they might have it more abundantly (John 10:10, KJV).” God has big plans for your life. He does not want you to just get by. He wants you to experience a life full of joy and excitement. God wants your life to be fulfilling. Why not seek Him out, because you have the promise that if you search, you will indeed find Him. God will complete your life like you could never imagine.
Not only are there people throughout the world who are searching for something more out of life. There are people who have the hope the searchers are looking for. As Christians, we have the hope of Jesus Christ living within our hearts. Yet we hide that light. Jesus said, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in Heaven (Matthew 5:14-16, NIV).” There are people around us everyday at work and school who are searching for the hope we have inside of us, but we are keeping it hidden. When you go to school or work each day, are you conscious of people around you who are hurting? Do you look for people you may be able to reach out to? Or are you too caught up in what’s going on in your life that you can’t see anyone else? There are people you see every single day that are lost and on their way to spend eternity without God and you have never once told them about God, much less just shown them the love of God by doing something for them. Sometimes I feel that we are more concerned about what it may look like if we associate ourselves with someone who may not be as “good” as we are than showing them love. It is high time that we, as Christians, wake up and realize that we have been put here for a purpose. That purpose is not just to take up space, but to spread the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ. There is hope in Christ, but we’re not telling people about it.
I believe the Casting Crowns’ song “Does Anybody Hear Her” depicts this idea in a magnificent way. When listening to this song, I believe that we should identify who we are in the story. Are we the person who is searching for something more out of life? Or are we the Christians who are turning these people away left and right because they may not fit into our idea of who is or isn’t good enough? There are people searching for something more and we have that for which they are searching. Why are we constantly hiding the good news of Jesus Christ?
http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=5a2e075a1a4a6e1b9770
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