Thursday August 22, 2013

Read Ecclesiastes 1:1-8

The human appetite really is insatiable. In verse 8 the Teacher declares that the eye never has enough of seeing and the ear never has enough of hearing. What he’s saying is that our appetite is insatiable.

 

Now of course, it doesn’t mean that we are all overweight or going to be overweight. What it means is that our inner being will never be satisfied without God. In that sense, our appetite is insatiable. Think about a drug addict. He may have started out using only a little marijuana. But over time that ‘hit’ proved to be too little. He needed more and more marijuana to get the same high. Eventually marijuana didn’t cut it. He had to switch to a harder drug and pretty soon ice or cocaine was the only drug that would give the same ‘hit’. Our appetites are insatiable.

 

Think of the alcoholic lying on the park bench. Once upon a time, in a different life, a few drinks after work with the mates would suffice. But as life grew more stressful, a few drinks didn’t meet the need. A few drinks after work turned into a few drinks every day which soon grew into a bottle every second day and so on. Our appetites are insatiable.

 

Without God the search for importance, security, significance and love is endless. Without God we look in all the wrong places and we will do and ingest and grab at anything that dulls the pain of reality. This helps explain why drug use, alcohol consumption and gambling are at all time highs.

 

But in Christ the search ends. In Christ we find the real meaning of life. In Christ we find security, significance and love. In Christ we find true, inner contentment that is not dependant upon our looks, our importance, our performance or our ‘goodness’. In Christ we find that we are loved for who we are.

 

Soon your church will gather together to celebrate and re-focus on the love of Christ. You have a vital role to play in that celebration. You have an important reason to be together with the body of Christ as it gathers in the throne room and sings glory to risen Lord.

 

Will you be there with your heart prepared to worship in Spirit and truth? Will you be there ready to share your love for Jesus, to encourage and to bless others? Will you be there to graciously welcome all who come? Will you be the Christ-light to those who need it?

 

Everything you have in Christ, your security, your significance, your love and contentment is meant to be shared and given away. In Christ is an endless supply for an insatiable heart. God’s reserve will never run dry. Tomorrow is the perfect day to give from the endless well that you have dipped into.

 

Prayer:

Write down at least one prayer point in each of the following categories based on the following verse.

 

Come to me all you who are weary and burdened

and I will give you rest

Matthew 12:28.

Adoration:

 

Confession:

 

Thanks:

 

Supplication:

¥ Pray that God would grant you wisdom and insight and gentleness as you seek to make the most of every opportunity that God blesses you with . Pray this too for everyone in your congregation. Pray that God would bring much conversion growth to your church as each person makes the most of every opportunity.

¥ Pray that those who teach within your church would be wise, filled with the Spirit and able to apply the Word to their own lives first. Pray that the listeners would be willing to heed the Word, to apply it and to practice it no matter what the cost.

Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. How could you use today’s passage to share your faith with Donald?

2.  What role does contentment play in sharing our faith with non-believers?