The Word Satisfies

From Wednesday to Saturday I attended the 2012 Envison Conference in Manly, an outreach of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa.  The weather was idyllic as we gathered daily for Bible study, worship through song, and encouragement through the fellowship of like-minded believers.

Before the first morning session of each day I enjoyed grabbing a coffee and sitting on a bench reading my Bible, watching the waves roll in.  Joggers, walkers engaged in conversation, and people strolling with their dogs passed in front of me on the boardwalk.  Beyond them the ocean disappeared into the distance, a glorious testimony of God's creative beauty.  Countless people enjoy visiting Manly from overseas annually, and others are privileged to call Manly home.  I wonder:  is the beauty lost on people who wake to such beauty every day?  Living in the western suburb of Beaumont Hills, I rarely enjoy mornings at the beach.

Even though I appreciated the cool weather and gentle ocean breezes, something inside of me said:  "Is this all?"  As night fell and people began to swarm the Corso in their scant dress or flashy clothes in search of a good time I wondered if their hearts asked the same question after they later obtained their goal:  "Is that all?"  After the singing in the pubs is over and the last of the beer is downed, what then?  Sunrises, sunsets, and wild nights all come to an end, even as every human life flickers and disappears into darkness.  Like the preacher says in Ecclesiastes, "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity."  Those who flaunt their youth and beauty today will be old and faded later.  Virile strength becomes impotent, and beauty dries up like leaves in autumn.  What then, o man?  What will you do when the end of your life draws nigh?  Will you whisper to yourself as you muse over unfulfilled desires, having done all in your power to obtain them:  "Is this all?"

As I sat there on an aluminium bench kissed by the morning light, I rejoiced in the living, powerful Word of God.  I can eat food and be satisfied for hours, yet the meals provided through the Bible stick to the ribs for eternity.  What satisfaction is to be found in God's everlasting promises!  What joy, peace, contentment, and guidance God provides through His Word!  Nothing in this world can compare to the beauty of God as revealed through the Bible.  The world paints caricatures of God because the world does not know His character.  Yet God has revealed Himself beyond any doubt as the Saviour of sinners, the Helper of the helpless, and the Father of all who repent and are born again through Jesus Christ.  The sunrise brought a smile to my face for a moment, but the love of Christ causes the Son to rise in my soul for eternity.

I have never heard God speak and thought, "Is that all?"  He gives those who trust in Him supreme satisfaction in Himself and His Word, an inexhaustible supply that never grows old.  The more we hear of the truth, the more we value and appreciate it.  When I first came to Christ I was satisfied - and I grow more satisfied day after day as I walk with Him.  The emptiness we experience in our souls can only be filled by God and His infinite love and grace.  Don't be satisfied with just tasting when God offers Himself for life!