What I’m about to share isn’t entirely original, but rather
my take on someone else’s perspective. There’s a teaching called “The Seven
Longings of the Human Heart”. Heard of it? I’d like to share it with you now
and for each one add a bit of encouragement about how God satisfies each of
these desires. The first longing: assurance that you are enjoyed
You know that feeling you get when you tell a joke and everyone in the room laughs? For a brief moment you feel like Sally Field at the Oscars: “They like me, they really like me.” Whether it be on a large or small scale, we all like the feeling of knowing that others enjoy our company, that they enjoy us for who we are.
What we seem to forget is that we have captured the attention of royalty. There’s a king out there who singles us out as the person He’d love nothing more than to spend the rest of His days enjoying.
“The
LORD your God is
with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you.” Zephaniah 3:17
The second longing: fascination
What makes you stop and stare? What has the ability to capture your attention and keep it for hours upon end? For a lot of us today, television can definitely claim that role. My husband and I can get an entire season of Blacklist and watch it tirelessly throughout the whole night until the sun rises, and then wonder how so much time passed and where all the drool came from.
We were made to be fascinated, but not by some-thing but by One thing, God. There is nothing in heaven above or earth below that can compare to the complexity and majesty of the living God who endures forever. What better to make us stop, stare, and drool?
“One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek … to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord.” Psalm 24:1
Which brings us to the next longing …
The third longing: beauty
During a cultural festival at my university, there was an international fashion show. Students from different areas of the world donned traditional clothing and jewelry and paraded across the stage throughout the evening. At one point a young Indian girl came out in a beautiful deep teal sari, and though there had been chatter amongst the crowd throughout the show, everyone stopped speaking and just stared. I myself was also quite struck by how beautiful this young woman was, and I couldn’t help but notice how she had captured the attention of everyone else in the room.
Any beauty that can be found on this earth pales greatly in comparison to
the beauty that is Jesus or that surrounds the throne of grace. Every
breathtaking landscape or perfectly cute baby was created by someone who knows
beauty, so can you imagine how beautiful He must be?
“And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.” Revelation 4:2-3
Likewise, we long to been seen as beautiful. Maybe as you read the story
I just shared, you were thinking, “Man, I wish I was that beautiful.” That’s not
a wrong feeling to have, but it is a perfect example of how deep this longing goes. I must add now that it wasn’t just her external beauty that captured
everyone’s attention, but something that was radiating from within. There was
an inner quality of beauty that made me not only want to admire her, but to
approach her and get to know her.
“Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious.” 1 Peter 3:3-4
The fourth longing: greatness
It’s graduation season right now and no matter if someone is graduating from kindergarten, high school, or college, there is an immense sense of pride each student feels as their family and peers celebrate their achievement.
The funny thing is, though we desire greatness, our definition of it isn’t always so Christ-like. When we think great, we think big (big money, big fame, big praise), but if we had an eternal perspective we’d know that the true greatness we all aspire to attain will only be achieved on the other side of this earth and the only way to be worthy of receiving it is to go low. You may not receive applause here on earth, but trust me, you'll get something much better in eternity.
“Whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave.” Matthew 20:26-27
The fifth longing: intimacy without shame
To know someone intimately is to know them inside and out, through and through, the good, the bad, and the ugly. A lot of times we fear being intimate with others because we feel like if they open this certain compartment of our personality or our heart, they might be disgusted and turn away. There’s a deep vulnerability that comes with intimacy, and it can be enough to scare people away from relationships even though they desire immensely to be known and loved.
When God promises that He will never leave us or forsake us (Heb. 13:5) that’s including the fact that He knows our thoughts before we think them and every single detail of our frame. There’s no fear in perfect love.
The sixth longing: to be wholehearted and passionate
When I was in middle school I got involved in track as a sprinter. I had a natural talent for it and enjoyed the attention I was getting from it (my longing for greatness was definitely getting met), but when I got to high school and saw how many upper classmen were really passionate about turning their bodies into machines and winning races, I quickly lost interest in continuing the sport because I knew I’d never want it as badly as they did.
Currently, as a teacher of the arts to orphans in Kenya, I have
found my passion. You know how I know? Because even thinking about working with
these kids fills my heart with immense joy. I eagerly spend a lot of time
putting together curriculum and planning fun activities for the kids. I’ve
never felt so content and so at peace with where I my life is, than I have recently.
As Christians we should have a desire to be consumed with
zeal for God and His kingdom. Oh, to have the kind of passion that Jesus had to
shake things up when he saw the temple of His father being made into a den a
thieves!
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with
all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind.” Luke 10:27
The seventh longing: to make a deep and lasting impact
Have you noticed all of the video advertisements and short films circulating on Facebook lately about people who demonstrated a random act of kindness and received a reward or thanks of some sort years and years later? Have you ever thought about why those films make you cry? It’s because of this longing.
The amount of time we spend on this earth is a very small blip on the radar in terms of how long this world has been and will be in existence. Regardless of how short life is, we want to know that we’ve done something that matters and that when we leave the earth, we leave a very deep impression on those we spent our life with.
When we spend our lives loving God and loving others, we are guaranteed to make great and lasting impact. Apart from Him, we can do nothing.
S'ambrosia is a published author and singer-songwriter with a heart to see God's people experience deep levels of intimacy with Him. She currently lives in Kenya with her husband where they have a ministry called The Joshua Blueprint which aims to come alongside existing children's homes to teach children various expressions of worship.
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