Bible Reading: Psalm 107:9, NKJV
As we turn the page and enter a new year, let me ask you this: Are you full?
You may think I’m talking about those delicious feasts that many enjoy during the Christmas season, but I’m actually talking about a different kind of hunger. While food that nourishes our bodies is good, it is nowhere near as eternally important as that which nourishes the soul. We need something that will feed the spiritual hunger that is within us.
My grandfather, Billy Graham, often said that there’s a “God-shaped hole” inside each of us. It’s that space that many people try to fill with wealth, possessions, sex, drugs, alcohol or work. They search for their purpose or significance, but do so in vain.
The problem is, the things of this world are fleeting, they’re broken, and they’ll eventually let you down. Money and belongings can be ripped away from you in a moment. Relationships falter. Drugs and alcohol wear off and leave you right back where you were, or worse.
There’s a beautiful passage in the book of Psalms that I’ve grown to love: “For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness” (Psalm 107:9, NKJV).
It’s such a simple sentence, but it encompasses all that mankind has been seeking for millennia. It is God who fills us up. He is the One who refreshes our soul and dwells in our innermost self, meeting those needs and desires that seem to be so elusive. We hunger for Him, and He alone satisfies.
As we turn the page and enter the New Year, what fills you? Are you consumed with bitterness and anger? Do you feel like you’ve gotten a raw deal in life? Are you chasing the things of this world to fill an emptiness in your soul? Are you sick and tired of being sick and tired?
If so, I’d encourage you to seek God and the goodness that He brings. Rather than being consumed with the temporary and broken, you could be filled with the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).
Draw close to God, let Him satisfy your longing and hungry soul, and you’ll truly have something to celebrate this year.
And from my family to yours, Happy New Year!
Scripture Reference: Psalm 107:9
9 For He satisfies the longing soul,
And fills the hungry soul with goodness.
Credit for Will Graham devotional 2022 : billygraham.org