THE PROMISE OF GREAT REWARD

“By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.”  (Hebrews 11:24-26 NIV)

This is where Christ dramatically deviates from the American dream. Yes, Jesus promises great reward, but His reward looks much different than what we might expect. The reward of the American dream is safety, security, and success found in more comfort, better stuff, and greater prosperity. But the reward of Christ trumps all these things and beckons us to live for an eternal safety, security and satisfaction that far outweigh everything this world has to offer us. 

-- David Platt in “Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream” 

#6118

WIRED FOR ETERNITY

“Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power. Let heaven fill your thoughts.”  (Colossians 3:1-2)

C. S. Lewis, the brilliant Christian apologist, noticed that everything that satisfies fails to satisfy completely. If we enjoy something, we always want more! Desires for such things as food, drink, and a home can normally be satisfied, but the lasting desires cannot be satisfied on this earth. This led Lewis to conclude that we were made for another world. There is a depth to human experience that will not and cannot reach fulfillment on this earth -- because we were made for heaven. “This world is not my home.” Time will never fulfill our deepest longings, because we were wired for eternity. 

-- Stuart Briscoe in “Daily Study Bible for Men”

#5768

THE SECRET OF BEING CONTENT

“I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.”  (Philippians 4:10-13 NIV)

Because we lack a divine Center, our need for security has led us into an insane attachment to things. We must clearly understand that the lust for affluence in contemporary society is psychotic. It is psychotic because it has completely lost touch with reality. We crave things we neither need nor enjoy. We buy things we do not want to impress people we do not like… Covetousness we call ambition. Hoarding we call prudence. Greed we call industry. 
 
-- Richard Foster in “Celebration of Discipline”

#5412

A PANTING DEER

“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for You, my God.” (Psalm 42:1)

This psalm got made into a song, and sometimes when people sing it they think it means they are supposed to long for God or like church services and church songs.  But this psalm is much bigger than that.  It means that God is my life-giver and therefore my desire for life cannot be satisfied apart from Him.

This is not a picture of Bambi wandering through a leafy-green, stream-laden forest with a slightly parched throat.  This is desert country.  No rivers, just wadis -- gullies that would contain water only in the rainy season.  Now the wadis are dried up, and the deer is going to die if it doesn’t find water.  That is us.  We were made for soul satisfaction and simply die without it.

If you want life, you want God.  You want Him the way a deer dying of thirst wants water.  You want God more than you know.

-- John Ortberg in “The Me I Want To Be”


#4113

YOUR LEVEL OF SOUL SATISFACTION

“And the LORD will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in parched places, and they will strengthen your bones; and you'll be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail.”  (Isaiah 58:11 ISV)

When we are hungry, anything on the menu looks good. When our soul is dissatisfied, sin begins to look tempting. That is why it is important to notice the level of soul satisfaction in our life.

On the dashboard of any car are certain lights that tell us how hot the engine is running or when we are about to run out of oil. They are commonly called “idiot lights” -- I suppose because only an idiot would ignore them. Likewise, the main light on the dashboard of our heart is our “soul satisfaction” light. This is why in the Bible there are so many commandments that call us to joy: “The joy of the Lord is your strength” and “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice!”

-- John Ortberg in The Me I Want to Be

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