Hungry

I've been waiting for my church to post this sermon for a week, and it's finally up. We're doing a series on the beatitudes in Matthew 5:1-12, and the one I've really liked so far was on Matthew 5:6:

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

If you want to listen to it and have the time (it's over 40 minutes), here's the link:

Are You Satisfied?

Basically, he talks about how some people see this verse as an admonishment and think they are not hungry enough for a relationship with God because of the things they fail to do. They don't go to church all the time, they don't read their Bibles all the time, they don't pray for hours and hours. They think that doing those things shows hunger for a relationship with God, and if they're not doing them, they're not really hungering and thirsting for God.

Instead, he says, we all have this hunger inside. Somewhere, sometime, we've all felt this aching for something that maybe we couldn't define. We need to be satisfied, so we go searching for satisfaction in life in all sorts of ways. It could be by pursuing a challenging career, having a family, engaging in hobbies, traveling or all sorts of other really positive things. We could also try to fill it with negative things like unhealthy relationships, alcohol, gambling and other destructive behaviors. It stands to reason that these negative things won't ever really satisfy us; they'll fill us up for awhile but still leave us feeling empty, sometimes even more so than before.

But, he says, even the positive things won't really satisfy us permanently. Only a relationship with God will truly satisfy that hunger, will finally fill us up. And when we realize that we need that relationship with God, then we are hungering and thirsting for righteousness. We shouldn't feel as though we need to fulfill certain obligations, to do certain things, to meet the criteria of hungering and thirsting for righteousness; realizing that we need the relationship with God and truly hungering after it is enough. And yes, when you experience that realization, chances are you'll want to spend more time in prayer, to explore his Word and do other things that bring you closer to him. But it's not the actions you take - it's the realization that nothing but a relationship with God will satisfy you that means you are hungering and thirsting for righteousness.

At least, that's what I got out of it. And I do remember times, before I really knew what it meant to be a Christian, when this longing would just hit. I've always had everything going for me: I have an amazing family (including a wonderful husband), my friends are the best, and I generally achieve what I set out to do. There have been bumps and poor decisions along the way, of course - and I know there are more to come - but by mainstream standards, I should have been satisfied a long time ago. But I remember being in high school, driving my trusty Ford Probe, and getting this urge to just go. There's something else there, I'd think. And maybe if I just drive fast enough and long enough, I'll find it. And in college, I made a choice that I thought would make me happy. It was a popular enough choice and I thought it was a fine one, but in the midst of all of it, I found myself knee deep in Lake Michigan, on a cloudy, windy day, with that same urge to just go. There's something out there, I thought. And if I could, I'd swim far enough and long enough to find it.

To sum it all up, I guess, all my advantages and achievements made me happy but not satisfied, not filled. When I finally realized I needed and could have a relationship with God, I felt like I was just brimming over. Like the song I've Always Known You by Ten Shekel Shirt says, "Maybe I've always known You, I just didn't know it."