Satisfaction

It's possible even in the midst of our muddled lives.

I had been feeling a bit cranky lately.

I called my girlfriend. She answered the phone telling me she was just going to call me so I could cheer her up. I confessed I had called her for the same reason. So we spent several minutes uttering our complaints (whining?). Our husbands didn’t understand us. Our families didn’t want to cooperate. Her hairdresser cut her hair too short. Mine left it too long. What is going on with clothing styles these days? My new refrigerator came with dents in the sides. We had been eating far too much ice cream and too many chips. The country is in a mess. And a rock put a crack in my windshield. Oh my goodness!!

We were both suffering from a moment of dissatisfaction. Or, as Merriam Webster states it, the lack of satisfaction. Satisfaction is the fulfillment of one’s desires, expectations or needs. To be satisfied is to be pleased or content with what has been received or experienced.

Wouldn’t you just love to always live the good life? Everything running smoothly. Everyone on time. No complications in scheduling. Everything we purchase is exactly right. Those around us agree with our point of view. Stories could be written about our near perfect families. Rocks never hit our windshields. That would be a description of ideal.

Real life, however, can be annoying in its inconsistency and its abundance of big and little

challenging situations. A perfect scenario for dissatisfaction. And we are not alone. A survey

done recently by the National Science Foundation found that only 14% of the folks questioned said that they were happy or satisfied in their lives. That means 86% were not!

Scripture tells us that satisfaction is possible. Even in the midst of our messy, muddled lives. Our God is a God of order and peace. Perhaps that is why we long for order and peace. God created us to long for Him; to have a desire for closeness with Him. Psalm 107:9 tells us, “For

he satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.” To long actually

means to ache for, yearn for and crave the object of our longing.

When our souls long for God, He is the only place we will find satisfaction for that yearning. When having a loving relationship with Him is the focus of our life, the difficulties of life don’t seem quite as difficult. When we lean on Him in trust and faith, He is always near, leaning His ear to hear when we need help and call His name.

We are bombarded every day with the suggestion that we cannot be happy or satisfied until we have a better car, more money, nicer clothes, an RV, a bigger house, a better body, and so on. We have a God who loves us unconditionally, desires to give us good gifts, promises to never leave us, promises to meet our every need and offers us eternal life. No thing on this earth will ever fulfill us like the love of God will. Remember this, “to be satisfied is to be pleased or content with what has been received or experienced.” God gives to us with intention and purpose. We will never be disappointed in placing our expectations on is His goodness.

After venting our frustrations, my girlfriend and I ended our conversation with a more hopeful tone. We assured each other that God is good and life is good. (Kind of like my friend, the pastor, always says, “It’s okay to visit that place, just don’t go there to live.”)

My girlfriend and I are both satisfied in our souls. We are living the good life.

How about you? Tell God all about it. He will help you. Satisfaction guaranteed!

Psalm 145:16 "You open your hand; you satisfy the desire of every living thing."