Cornelius Plantinga Jr.‘s first chapter in “Engaging God’s World” goes into great detail about what it means to deeply hope and long. A favorite quote that he uses is from C. S. Lewis.
“We are half-hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”
How sad it is that we are easily pleased. I can not help but think of Christmas. It is our human nature to be excited and happy when we get what we want but do we really truly know what we want in life. What if what God has planned is way more exciting and adventurous than a boring and comfortable life that I have picked out for myself. This summer was spent in Colorado with my grandparents, mom, and little sister. We were there to help my grandpa recover after kidney failure. Everything about Colorado is beautiful - the mountains, crisp morning air, open land, and so much more. Many days were spent in a rehabilitation clinic encouraging and helping my grandpa so my little sister and I would often play boardgames with other senior citizens or enjoy a game of tag or hide-and-go-seek on the newly cut grass. Yet...how rare was it for us to journey to the mountains literally right next to us and hike. Hmmm...there is something wrong with that picture. We didn’t always have to confine ourselves to my grandpa’s clinic but we did when we were offered a world more exciting beyond what we knew. What we know of this infinite joy, we have only gotten glimpses of. God offers it to us abundantly through Him but we do not always accept it. It is true that nothing in this earth can ever satisfy us. I like the quote by J. R. R. Tolkien that talks about our final joy lying “beyond the walls of the world.” How encouraging this is to me. Life would be so depressing to me if the only joys in my life came from what the shallow, broken world had to offer. The world can only fill my cup an eighth of the way, whereas my Heavenly Father overflows it with joy and fulfillment beyond any that I will ever know.
I love what St. Augustine prays, “O Lord, you have made us for yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.” Part of this resting means that we trust in Him to supply our future for us. We let Him care for us as our Heavenly Father longs to do. This reminds me of Psalm 91:1,2, “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
Very good insights. I appreciate reading your posts how you often tie it to your own life, it makes it very interesting and applicable to read. I really like this section:
ReplyDelete" I like the quote by J. R. R. Tolkien that talks about our final joy lying 'beyond the walls of the world.' How encouraging this is to me. Life would be so depressing to me if the only joys in my life came from what the shallow, broken world had to offer."
Isn't it so true that without the greater hope of Christ as our Lord and Savior we would be never be satisfied. I cannot imagine living without this fact. If I were to only ever look forward to the next weekend, next break, or summer I would be someone who only lives in the future. How depressing that would be! I thank God that when all else seems to fall apart, I will still have the hope that Christ will come back and deliver the final blow to sin and suffering.
Kendra, I enjoyed reading this post very much. I,too, like the way you tied a personal story to the material from the book. This is so true: "What we know of this infinite joy, we have only gotten glimpses of. God offers it to us abundantly through Him but we do not always accept it." It is true, we are so foolish to ignore God's offerings and refrain from trusting in him.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the Bible verses that you related to this chapter as well as the quote from Augustine. I think its important to remember that we can find fulfillment and peace in God, both now and forever.
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