Why Am I Not Satisfied?

 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! For he satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things. – Psalm 107:8-9 (ESV)

According to Wikipedia, the 18th-century entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood pioneered many of the marketing strategies used today, including the satisfaction-or-money-back guarantee on the entire range of his pottery products. He took advantage of his guarantee offer to send his products to wealthy clientele across Europe unsolicited. The money-back-guarantee was also a major tool of early U.S. mail-order sales pioneers in the United States such as Richard Sears and Powel Crosley Jr. to win the confidence of consumers.

Psalm 107:9 teaches that God satisfies the deepest longings of your soul and fills your soul with good things. Psalm 107 teaches that God’s goodness and steadfast love lead to our satisfaction and are reasons to be grateful. Pastor Jim answered the question of why some people don’t have satisfaction in life and how God can satisfy our souls.

Reflection

When was the last time you returned a product because you weren’t satisfied? How satisfied are you in your life, faith, and relationship with God?

Praise/Prayer

Praise God for some of the ways you have experienced the love and goodness of God. Ask God to help you find deep satisfaction in life through your relationship with Him.

Instead of Darkness, He Gives Light

 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart. – Psalm 107:14 (ESV)

Pastor John Jones recalled a story of a friend who flew combat choppers in VietNam. He was radioed to a secret mission one night which required him to fly in total darkness, totally by instruments. Hovering above a jungle under heavy cloud cover, he told me that it seemed you could cut the darkness with a knife. He radioed to his man on the ground and said, “What can you give me?” The guy had not even a flashlight. The landing had to be so precise, in a small “postage” stamp in the middle of the jungle-an error of five feet could crash the chopper and kill them all. Finally, the man on the ground said “I have a zippo!” He said, “Light it and hold it up.” So in the middle of the jungles of Southeast Asia, on a top-secret warfare mission, a combat chopper pilot landed by the light of a zippo lighter that pierced the darkness. (From a sermon by John Jones)

In Scripture, darkness often represents the power of sin and evil. The psalmist uses the picture of God bringing His people out of darkness into light to represent God working in the lives of His children. Even the smallest light forces the darkness to flee. Things represented by darkness in Scripture can’t provide lasting satisfaction for the soul.

Reflection

When have you tried to use things of darkness to find satisfaction but realized they could not satisfy your soul?

Praise/Prayer

Praise Jesus as the Light of the World and the Light of your soul. Ask God to shine His light on any darkness in your life and bring you into the light.

Instead of Distress, He Gives Hope

Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction. – Psalm 107:1-20 (ESV)

Peanut’s cartoon: Lucy and Linus were sitting in front of the television set when Lucy said to Linus, “Go get me a glass of water.” Linus looked surprised, “Why should I do anything for you? You never do anything for me.” “On your 75th birthday,” Lucy promised, “I’ll bake you a cake.” Linus got up, headed to the kitchen, and said, “Life is more hopeful when you have something to look forward to.”

God’s children always have something to look forward to. In Psalm 107:17-32 people are suffering. In Psalm 107:19, God’s people are in trouble and they are in distress. However, in verse 20 God offers them hope by healing them and delivering them. God’s people can always have hope because they know God is ultimately going to bring healing and deliverance in heaven.

Reflection

When was the last time you felt like you were in distress? How did your faith give you hope in that situation?

Praise/Prayer

Thank God for hearing your prayers when you cry out in distress. Praise God for the hope He brings even when life is hard.

Instead of Despair, He Gives Joy

He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water. And there he lets the hungry dwell, and they establish a city to live in; – Psalm 107:35-36 (ESV)

The summer drought of 2007 allowed scientists and archaeologists in Florida to look through a window into the state’s past and uncover hidden treasures just below the surface of Lake Okeechobee. Because of the drought, the lake hit its lowest level on record. In some areas the shoreline receded more than a mile, creating areas of dry lakebed where historical artifacts have been uncovered, with some dating back 500 years or more.

Spiritual droughts are not fun, to say the least. But the trials and moments of doubt that come during personal drought can reveal many things about us. (Preaching Today) Pastor Jim reminded us in the sermon that God can take the desert seasons of our lives and brings us to springs of joy.

Reflection

Can you recall a time when God brought something beautiful out of a desert season in your life?

Praise/Prayer

Thank God for the times you remember Him turning your desert seasons into blessings. Ask God to make His joy spring out of you today.

Instead of Death, He Gives Life

Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. He led them by a straight way till they reached a city to dwell in. – Psalm 107:6-7 (ESV)

A little boy and his father were driving down a country road on a beautiful spring afternoon. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a bumblebee flew in the car window. Since the little boy was deathly allergic to bee stings he became petrified. His father quickly reached out, grabbed the bee, squeezed it in his hand, and then released it. But as soon as he let it go, the young son became frantic once again as it buzzed by the little boy.

The father sensed his son’s terror. Once again he reached out his hand, but this time he pointed to this hand. There, stuck in his skin was the stinger of the bee. “You see this?” he asked. “You don’t need to be afraid anymore. I’ve taken the sting for you.” (James S. Hewett)

Jesus took the sting of death for you on the cross. Death is not the end for the believer because you have eternal life through Jesus. In Psalm 107:6-7, the Lord promises to deliver His people from distress to a city. The believers’ final destination is the city in Heaven with Christ.

Reflection

Funerals reveal a lot about our view of God and the deceased relationship to Jesus. How have you seen the hope of Heaven make the difference at the funeral of a Christian?

Praise/Prayer

Thank Jesus for dying in your place on the cross. Pray for someone you know to come to Christ who is currently lost.