Sovereign Joy

How many times have you tried to fill the void that dissatisfaction leaves? C.S. Lewis once wrote "what does not satisfy when we find it, was not the thing we were desiring." I know that I have tried multiple times to find joy in things that others seem to be happy with. I have spent long hours and numerous efforts to find what will give me a great experience or wonderful memories, and I long for things that will surely give me satisfaction. I know that God gives me all I need, but my heart all too often points me towards other things for fulfillment. I love the way that the KJV phrases Jeremiah 17:9-

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?"

My desperately wicked heart can so often blur my vision and my discernment. No kind of friend, book, hairstyle, emotional support, relationship, status, or job will ever give me the satisfaction my heart so desperately seeks. The happiness may last for a fleeting moment, but it will not produce abundant joy! How often have I clung to an earthly promise, keeping it for myself rather than offering it to Christ? After giving up his immoral lifestyle for a Christian walk, St. Augustine prayed this prayer:

"How sweet all at once it was for me to be rid of those fruitless joys which I had once feared to lose! . . . You drove them from me, You who are the true, the sovereign joy. You drove them from me and took their place, You who are sweeter than all pleasure . . . O Lord my God, my Light, my Wealth, & my Salvation."

Although my heart may say something will bring me joy, I will not find fulfillment unless it is intimacy with Christ. Even if I convince myself that an earthly blessing has come from the Father for me to find joy in, it will never be my Ultimate joy and satisfaction. We've got to stop putting our hope in things that will not ultimately and eternally satisfy, and find fulfillment in the Lord!