The Psalmist wrote, “Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup; you make my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely, I have a delightful inheritance.” (Psalm 16:5,6)
While certain toxic conditions in my world are real, they a) never define who I am and b) are never environments in which I am required to live. My place is pleasant; it is one wherein I live in a state of having all needs met and all desires satisfied.
I literally and fundamentally live in a state of having all needs met.
A great contributor to broken or strained relationships, violent behavior, drug abuse, depression, suicide, etc. is the presence and power of unmet needs. So, it goes without saying that if I have had all my needs met, the foundation has been laid for freedom from all these woes. As my unmet needs are met, the assaulting evils that ride in on those unmet needs become disbanded.
While there are different forms of human bliss that I can experience, depending on what phase of life I am in or the conditions that exist around me, I do become weary and need to be refreshed; I do become faint and need to be satisfied. But in whatever state I find myself, I do have an advocate to help me, one who is with me forever.
As I experience God’s will being done in my world, I can and do live in true contentment. And because my Father’s kingdom rule is in full force and effect, I literally have need of nothing. I literally and fundamentally live in a state of having all desires satisfied.
The Lord himself is the creator and gratifier of all my desires. Conversely, any evil desires I may have are simply due to Satan’s act of perverting the good things which God has created. So, when God by his Holy Spirit enters me and re-establishes his kingdom in and around me, he restores all that is lacking. Hence, I walk in true contentment, the same contentment that is in heaven now. And, while it will one day exist for all mankind forever, it is promised to me now. He lives with me and will be in me. I am in Him, and He is in me.
As such all perverted cravings are displaced and all that is lacking is restored. I now have grounds to exist in perpetual wellness, as I am satisfied “with [his] unfailing love, that [I] may sing for joy and be glad all [my] days.” (Psalm 90:14)
In this state, rebellious resistance becomes obedient surrender to God’s wonder and ways. As I serve God in a new spirit, mere tolerance turns into holy and anointed passion. Here, lingering despondency changes into eager exuberance – my life is worship.
Furthermore, because he has a fresh plan for each day, banal monotony is converted into imaginative diversity. Finally, as I live out his many-faceted plan, meager temporality is transformed into abundant spirituality, where everything I do has an eternal outcome. Take a moment to ponder this.
We will continue this conversation in my next article.