Satisfied

"I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of food, with singing lips my mouth will praise You. On my bed I remember You; I think of You through the watches of the night. Because You are my help, I sing in the shadow of Your wings. I cling to You; Your right hand upholds me." (Psalm 63:5-8)
     A good old hymn says:
     "All my life long, I had panted for a drink from some cool spring
     That I hoped would quench the burning of the thirst I felt within.

     Feeding on the husks around me till my strength was almost gone,
     Longed my soul for something better, only still to hunger on.

     Poor I was, and sought for riches, something that would satisfy;
     But the dust I gathered round me only mocked my soul's sad cry.

     This is the right attitude to have. Hungering and thirsting leads to satisfaction. The wrong atttiude would be that of the Laodocean Church, as described by Jesus Himself: "You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.'." (Revelation 3:17a, God's Word Translation) We can only receive blessings with empty hands.
     I am not down on America like a lot of Christians seem to be today, who favor a more liberal side of politics. I believe there are many good values we have in this land that we should keep, But one American value we can do without is this idea of independence to an extreme, of self-sufficiency, of an appreciation of "pulling ourselves up by our own bootstraps" (I really don't like that phrase at all). The Bible teaches just the opposite. We are totally dependent creatures. We do not get our next breath unless God deigns to give it to us. We would not even be Americans if God, in His grace, did not allow us to be born here or to become citizens here. I have a sort of "trinity" of verses that sum up my views on this matter. Here they are.
     "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me." (1 Corinthians 15;10, English Standard Version)
     "Who says that you are any better than other people? What do you have that wasn't given to you? If you were given what you have, why are you bragging as if it weren't a gift?" (1 Corinthians 4:7, God's Word Translation)
     "I am the vine, you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me." (John 15:5, Holman Christian Standard)
     Did you catch the key phrases in those three verses? "By the grace of God I am what I am." "What do you have that wasn't given to you?"  "You can do nothing without Me." Let's put it this way: Without Christ, I AM NOTHING. Without Christ, I HAVE NOTHING. Without Christ, I CAN DO NOTHING. The Good News is that in Christ, I find true satisfaction, because I discover that I am a new creature in Christ, a child of God, deeply loved, forgiven, freed from my guilt, a person with hope and deep joy. In Christ, I have everything I need, I am provided for, I have spiritual gifts to use for His service, I have a church family that loves me, I have His Word to guide me, I have access to His throne of grace, I have His indwelling Spirit for the daily living of this new life, and so much more. In Christ "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13), that is, I can be content whether I am prospering or wanting, I can sing in a prison, I can smile at suffering, I can aspire to true holiness and Christlikeness, I can love my enemies, I can keep my word, I can give with joy, and so much more.
     The hymn writer got it, Here is the final verse and chorus of the song.
     "Well of water, ever springing, Bread of Life, so rich and free;
     Untold wealth that never faileth, My Redeemer is to me.

     Hallelujah! I have found Him, Whom my soul so long has craved!
     Jesus satisfied my longings, thro' His blood I now am saved."
     (Clara T. Williams, Ralph E. Hudson)

     So what do we do to maintain this satisfaction? David tells us. We keep a continual attitude of praise (verse 5b); we meditate on Him at all times, and in particular, as we end each day (verse 6); we live in daily dependence on Him and cling to Him as our only help (verses 7-8) - because only in Him are we fulfilled human beings, only in Him do we have everything we truly need, and only in Him can we accomplish the things that really matter for eternity.
     "And Christ is the head of the Body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead so that in everything He might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him. ... In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." (Colossians 1:18-19, 2:3, NIV) So let's hunger and thirst for Him like this is true.