We all have a void in our soul. A longing and craving in our hearts. A thirst to feel complete, to be made whole. Do you ever wonder if there’s a reason for this empty gap we feel? That perhaps, this missing piece in our lives is designed on purpose. Think about it: if there was no void or gap, we would have no need for God. We would be able to satisfy our lives through our own strength and wisdom, therefore never having a need to depend on God and His goodness.
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to live a full life. In fact, Jesus actually “came to give us life, and that we may have life and live it abundantly” (John 10:10). However, most of us think that once we get what we want, then we will feel complete, and it’s then that we will feel whole.
We tend to live our life with many “if onlys.” We think that IF ONLY we can get that one thing we want most, it is then that we will feel whole, satisfied, and complete.
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The Problem with Living Life with “If Only's”
The problem with going about your life thinking “if only” I can just get that next thing is “the next things” never actually deliver what it is you think they are meant to promise. Or if they do deliver their promise, it only lasts for a season. It is temporary. Once filled for a moment, our soul and heart continue to crave for that hole to be filled again.
Once I received that dream job in that dream career I worked hard for, I still longed for more. Once I received the perfect proposal and the most perfect husband, I still was left with a missing piece. Once I lost the weight to fit into those jeans, I still didn’t feel the joy I was expecting to fill inside.
“If only's” leave you with discontentment. That longing for more still remains.
That’s because that longing was only ever meant to be fulfilled by one: Jesus. We were designed to have a longing and a gap, a longing that drives us to Him. Only He can fulfill it by providing what He alone can offer.
Here are 7 assurances that Jesus alone is better than what you want most in the world.
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1. Jesus Provides Peace That Surpasses Our Understanding
Philippians 4:6-7 says “be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
We often seek out those ‘if only’ circumstances hoping they will bring us peace and fulfillment. But most of the time, these things leave us anxious as we search for them, and wait for them. This Scripture teaches us to take it all to Jesus in prayer, while at the same time thanking Him for what we do have, not what we lack. It is then that the peace of God will overwhelm you beyond your understanding, guarding you and protecting you.
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2. He Provides Security in an Insecure World
The world we live in is nothing but news and social media broadcasting all the reasons we are to be insecure in this world. The truth is: nothing is secure in the world we live in. Jobs can be lost, economies can plunge, spouses can disappoint, dream homes can burn down, pandemics can cause isolation, friends can fail, death can claim our loved ones.
What are you building your foundation on? Those things of the world you’re desiring? Doing so can leave us in an insecure state of mind, as we live in an insecure world with circumstances outside of our control.
Thankfully, God provides a security in the midst of this insecure world. He is the only stable rock in an unstable terrain. An unshakeable God in a shakable world. Psalm 18:31-33 reminds us of the security offered through Jesus. “Could there be any other like you… for there is not a more secure foundation to build my life upon that you. You have wrapped me in power… through you I ascend to the highest peaks… standing strong and secure in you.”
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3. He Provides a Love That Will Never Disappoint
Have you ever felt disappointed by those who love you? Even the greatest parent, the most wonderful friend, or that perfect husband will disappoint you at some point in this life. The wonderful thing about Jesus is, His love is so amazing that His love will never disappoint. For “His love never fails” (Psalm 136). Paul taught us that not only is Jesus’s love for us unfailing, but it’s also immeasurable: “it’s too wonderful to be measured… and comprehend just how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love for us is” (Ephesians 3:18-19).
4. He Provides a Lasting Satisfaction That Never Runs Dry
We all crave to be satisfied in this life, and we tend to fill that hunger and thirst with the temporary things of this world. But let’s remember, they are temporary substitutes and we may only think that’s what we need. Our hearts were made to thirst for more, but to thirst after God. Never again must we settle for unsatisfying substitutes that aren’t capable of filling the void in our souls. Only Jesus gives us a true, eternal satisfaction.
One of the most beautiful examples of this in Scripture is when Jesus meets the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4. She had been married five times, looking to be satisfied in areas no other person was ever intended to fulfill. Jesus shared with her in verse 13 that “whoever drinks of this water [the water the world offers] will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst.” Jesus wanted her to know that He was the one that could provide “living water” that no one else could offer her.
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5. He Provides Strength Where We Are Most Weak
Many of the things we want in life are too much for us to do in our own strength. If you’re like me, you’ve tried on countless occasions to do something or change something about yourself or your situation, only to find you are in the same position you started in, or worse. We were not meant to live this life in our own strength.
2 Corinthians 12:9 says, “for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Friends, we want so many things in this life, and maybe some of them are desires given directly from the Lord, but we will continue to fail or go around in circles if we continue to try to accomplish them in our strength. Jesus is better than our weaknesses and better than even our greatest strengths (1 Corinthians 1:25).
6. He Provides a Confidence You Can’t Find Anywhere Else
We are not given a roadmap with next steps on decisions we have to make. We are not told what college to attend, the career path to take, or the spouse to marry. We know we want and desire things for our life here on earth, but sometimes we are unsure of the best step to take.
Jesus provides a confidence you can’t find anywhere else. We know that His ways are good and He has a purpose for us. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you hope and a future.” We can attempt to put our confidence in ourselves, others, or other’s promises, or we can choose to put our trust in the confidence of Jesus. For “His thoughts are higher than our thoughts, His ways are higher than our ways.”
Thankfully, we don’t need to figure out this life on our own and find confidence in anyone else besides Jesus. Our confidence and hope in our future can rest in Him and Him alone.
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7. He Provides an Identity No One Else Can Sustain
Do you find your worth and identity in what you do for work? Perhaps you have spent most your life waiting for the title of a wife or a mom. But what happens if that is stripped away from you, or perhaps it doesn’t happen at all, as God has a different path for your life? Our worth can’t be found in what we do, or wrapped up in another person. Nor what other people say about us.
The most unwavering, unchanging identity is found in what God says about you. Not what the world says. Hear this: God has “chosen” you (1 Peter 2:9). You belong to His kingdom no matter what the world has to say. God created you and only you as you are uniquely created. In fact, He tells us that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14). We are His “masterpiece” (Ephesians 2:10), whom He “knit us together in our mother’s womb” (Psalm 139:13).
Jesus’ view of you far outweighs whatever worth the world has put on you.
Jesus Is Better Than Anything
I can now say this with full confidence, that Jesus is far better than anything this life could offer me. I know this because even when I felt I had everything I wanted, I still had a longing for more as something was always missing. Jesus is far better than anything I could ever design and imagine for myself. We think we may know what’s best for our lives, but I promise His ways, His thoughts, His plans, are so much better.
I’ve learned this by trial and error, searching and temporarily fulfilling, chasing, and scraping, just like the Samaritan woman, that nothing this world has to offer can satisfy our thirst the way our Savior can. Knowing Jesus and being in His presence is truly better than the “if only” you are searching for. What we pursue apart from Jesus does not satisfy. I encourage you to start today. Choose Jesus first and above all—for he is far better, and forever lasting.
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Originally published Monday, 05 October 2020.
