by Stephanie Fox
We live in a world saturated with pain,
sorrow, loss and difficulties.
Even the Western world, for all its
material prosperity, is not exempt.
People everywhere are searching for
something to give them peace and relief.
Unfortunately, many of the things people
think will bring them happiness only offer a temporary or partial release from
the pain, hurt and grief that often fills their aching hearts.
Is there really any hope amid the chaotic
frenzy of our lives?
Problems have been part of the human
experience for thousands of years, and a great deal of the world's literature
focuses on the difficulties that all people experience in daily living.
It is no coincidence that much of the Bible
is made up of stories that are just as relevant to our lives today as when they
took place thousands of years ago.
Unfortunately, the rich sources of insight
and wisdom into God's solutions for the human condition, as recorded in the
Bible, are often neglected today.
Let us take a look at some of these
stories. Perhaps there will be something to help you with a problem you are
experiencing.
There was a woman in the Old Testament who
was suffering from poverty.
Her husband had died, leaving her with a
large debt. The only things left in her possession were one jar of oil and her
two sons—the latter about to be taken as slaves to pay the debt.
In her desperation she called on God's
prophet, Elisha, who instructed her to go to her neighbours and borrow as many
pots and jars as they would lend her.
Through Elisha, God was about to work a
miracle for the poor widow.
The woman was told to pour the oil into all
the jars she had borrowed.
As she poured from her one small jar, the
oil kept flowing, filling all the containers she had to overflowing!
She was then able to sell the oil and pay
the debt. (Read
the story in 2 Kings 4:1-7.)
Just like those unfilled oil jars, our
lives often seem empty.
While material prosperity is fast advancing
in our nation, many lives are in ruin.
Current divorce and suicide statistics show
unhappiness is widespread. People feign happiness but often laughter is only a
mask for the pain and emptiness inside.
To compensate for this emptiness, people
try to fill their “jars” with all kinds
of different things.
Sometimes it is drugs, alcohol, television,
friends, parties, work, money—and the list goes on.
Unfortunately, these things are transient.
They fill the longing for a time but the happiness and fulfilment soon
evaporate.
Nevertheless, there is something, or rather
Someone, who can fill those empty vessels!
That someone is Jesus!
Speaking of the
experience of a heart filled with the glory and knowledge of Jesus Christ the
apostle Paul described it this way: “But we have this treasure in jars of
clay” (2
Corinthians 4:7).
The solution to our difficulties is not to
struggle alone with them but to allow Jesus to take control of our lives. Not
all difficulties will be removed but we will have divine strength to deal with
them.
The theme of God wanting to fill our lives
with peace and comfort is repeated often in the Bible.
Once, Jesus was travelling from the land of
Judea, through Samaria, and on to Galilee.
In Samaria, He stopped to rest by Jacob's
well. While He sat there, a woman from that country came to fill her water jugs
at the well.
Jesus, thirsty from walking the long dusty
roads, asked the woman for a drink.
Jesus was known for sharing His message of
hope and love in object lessons.
And on this
occasion decided to share with this woman an object lesson she would never
forget: “Everyone who drinks this water,” He
said, “will be thirsty again, but whoever
drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will
become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:13, 14).
The things this world offers will quench
our thirst for just a moment, but Jesus, the Water of Life, will fill our lives
to overflowing and will satisfy our every need!
As David, the
psalmist, declares: “You open your hand and satisfy the
desire of every living thing” (Psalm 145:16).
Through the power Christ gives, He will
enable us to cope with the stresses of life, He will comfort us in times of
sorrow and bereavement and, most importantly, will give us a hope that will
strengthen us and give us the will to press on!
King Solomon knew what it was like to live
apart from God. In the early part of his reign, He acknowledged God as the
Creator and source of all strength and wisdom.
One night, in a dream, God spoke to Solomon
and asked Him what he would like to be given.
Instead of requesting riches, fame, long
life, or other temporal things, Solomon asked for wisdom and a discerning heart
to be able to judge and guide his people.
God was pleased with Solomon's virtuous
request, and He granted Solomon great wisdom.
For that part of his life, Solomon was
respected by the nation for his mercy and justice. He walked in the ways of God
and was abundantly blessed because of his uprightness.
But, gradually, pride and self-sufficiency,
along with the influence of idolatrous and pagan wives, became Solomon's
downfall.
Eventually he turned his back on God and
began to fill his life with all kinds of other things. He was someone to be
envied; he had it all!
He did not want for women, musicians, gold,
silver and precious stones, lands and ships. He was also famous! Yet, he was
not happy.
In seeking worldly treasure, Solomon had
forgotten to seek out the source of true happiness.
Instead of being honoured by his realm for
his kind and benevolent acts, he became a dictator and a tyrant; he taxed the
people higher in order to supply money for his projects.
Worst of all, God's favour was no longer
upon him.
After squandering so much precious time in
seeking worldly fame, Solomon realized his mistake and turned back to God,
forsaking the path he had been treading.
After fulfilling all his ambitious goals,
Solomon declared that it was all vanity (see Ecclesiastics 1:1, 2).
How can this knowledge help you?
Christ came so
you “may
have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).
He created you for a special purpose and it
is His intent to fill your cup to overflowing that you may experience life in
the fullest sense!
He is offering peace, rest and contentment
to all who will reach up with a hand of faith and take hold of this free gift.
Though you are but a small, insignificant
speck of dust in comparison to the size of the universe, God cares about you!
He who sees a sparrow fall is sure to be
interested in your personal welfare and affairs.
Life may seem as empty as those oil jars,
but God wants to work a miracle for you!
He wants to fill our lives to overflowing
with more blessings than we could ever count!
He is our only lasting hope amid the
pressing difficulties of life!
No comments:
Post a Comment