"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10)
When I did my final psychology research project in college, the findings of my study were that people who tend to strive towards accepting and understanding themselves also tend to be more satisfied with their lives. The folks in my study who relied more on the approval of others were often less satisfied. After I presented my results, one of my mentors asked me what I thought life satisfaction scores would be in those striving for a stronger faith. The answer to the question should be that faith-centered goals lead us to a higher satisfaction, but unfortunately I'm not sure it would be true. You see, we tend to let other things get in the way. Even if we want to grow closer to God, we are so distracted. We fill our lives with so many things for "self improvement": jobs, school, relationships, fitness, hobbies, and more. Don't get me wrong, those things are important! We are given talents by God and called to use them. But are we honestly pursuing those talents to be good stewards? I know in my own life I'm guilty of using all those things as a distraction, and relying on them to make me happy. I lean on them for fulfillment. Ironically, when I pursue all the things that are supposed to fill my life with purpose, I end up feeling more empty.
The reason that I said people with faith-centered goals would be happier is that those of us who are saved by Christ and loved by the Father don't need to keep searching and trying to find fulfillment. The goals we set in life can change, and we are almost sure to fail at a few of them. But when we set our sights on God, and seek to know Him better, we are sure to be satisfied. He gives us His Word for comfort and instruction. He delights in giving us gifts. From Him we learn humility, mercy, love, and joy. In Him we have forgiveness when we fail, and help when we falter. He doesn't just give us eternal life, He fills it to the brim. When others fail us, and we fail ourselves, God is still there to hold us up.
Next time you're feeling empty and discouraged from all the goals you've fallen short of, remember where you get your purpose.
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