Something More

This past weekend, Houston residents were blessed with what even a cynical soul like myself called perfect weather: two days without a cloud in sight; fresh air; low humidity; and temperatures ranging from slightly chilly to shirt-sleeve. If you ever visit this part of Texas, plan your trip for this time of the year, when outdoor conditions are at the peak of comfort and the birds and wildflowers at their most attractive.

Most of us experience, from time to time, the joy of a "perfect day." Depending on your own taste, that can mean anything from a drive in the country to a grand tour of downtown to a holiday dinner with extended family. However they come wrapped, all "perfect days" have certain things in common: they are unusually free of frustrations and annoyances; they make us forget to watch the clock; and the only regret they leave us with is that they didn't last forever.

Mixed, perhaps, with the regret that they are so rare. By the mere act of standing out, the "perfect" times in our lives are also one more proof of how imperfect the world is as a whole. Maybe that explains those moments when, in the middle of spectacularly beautiful or happy events, we feel sudden bursts of melancholy pain that seem to come unprovoked from nowhere. We can talk all we want about the advantages of less perfect times--they build character, they help us appreciate the good days all the more by contrast--but deep down, we all long for a "perfect day" we will never have to say goodbye to.

Eve gave up our first chance at that possibility when she allowed herself to be tempted into dissatisfaction even in the midst of perfection. We can be grateful that God loved us too much to let that first chance be the last:

"...the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies" (Rom. 8:21-23, NIV). And of the rest of Creation.

Then, all who trust God will finally have that perfect day with no end.

There are few greater joys than a fresh spring day
When the sky is a cloudless blue,
When the air holds a mixture of warmth and chill
And the flowers and the leaves are new.
But if you pause and open your deepest soul
To the beauty of spring's full store,
You will sense a faint ache hidden in the joy,
And a longing for something more.

There are few greater joys than to share a love
With your family or with a friend,
Than to know there is someone you truly trust,
Someone on whom you can depend.
But if you pause and feel in your deepest heart
All that flows as two souls adore,
You will sense faint regret that you yet must part,
And a longing for something more.

All of earth's brightest days pass like setting suns;
And in any two souls that love,
One will die or change heart and so break the bond
At some time in the years that move.
But if you give your soul and your heart to God,
Then one day, on His Heavenly shore,
You will find in Him joy with no hint of ache:
He Himself is our Something More!

Lord, Please Fill My Heart with Joy

People used to joke about movie starlets who never wanted to turn thirty; but judging from today's medical advice, forty is the birthday to watch out for. Until then, most people apparently can take good health for granted; afterward, we have special need for annual medical exams, anti-aging vitamins, daily exercise, and super-cautious eating.

Partly in preparation for attaining the big 4-0 myself next March, I've recently begun researching hormonal balances and nutrition. And at times wish I hadn't. Five or six books on good health can leave you wondering if the only hope is learning to survive on vitamin supplements. Everything you could possibly put in your mouth apparently causes cancer, heart disease, or osteoporosis--if not directly, from being poisoned through food processing and/or environmental toxins. Worse yet, no two "experts" seem to agree on what you should eat. Eggs are a vital source of nutrients--no, they'll drive your cholesterol through the roof. Fresh fruit is good for you--no, it'll overload your blood with carbohydrates and glucose. You need three servings of dairy products, and six of whole grains, daily--no, that'll give you a major hormone imbalance. One author, pushing the idea that the USDA Food Guide Pyramid was a conspiracy of farming interests and that what we really need is more red meat and raw milk, rattled off a list of diseases that have increased in the last century and then asked sardonically, "If the now-accepted diet is so good for us, why are we so sick?"

Probably from worrying about our health.

The obsessive search for a diet that will keep us in top physical condition indefinitely is another manifestation of the search for total control that has driven humanity since Eve bought the "you will be like God" line. Just visit amazon.com or WorldCat and count the number of books that purportedly tell us--in detail--how to ensure regular good luck, prepare for any crisis from job loss to a major terrorist attack, or otherwise ensure the rest of our lives will run smoothly. Many such writers now go so far as to tell us we literally do have Godlike powers. Virtually all imply that "you know best what will make you happy."

Do we? What about the many people who get what they desperately want and later regret it--or the ones who don't get what they want and are later glad they didn't?

The truth is that real happiness--pure, deep joy--comes not from circumstances but from God. Reject His authority, and you'll end up echoing Ecc. 2:10-11: "I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure.... Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained." Stay in right relationship with your Lord, and, like Paul, you'll be able to sing for joy even if lying injured in a prison cell (Acts 16:22-25).

And, in better times, to occasionally enjoy a chocolate cheesecake without worrying it'll kill you.

Lord, please fill my heart with joy:
No earthly peace I crave,
Nor fame, applause, or mortal wealth,
Lest I prove fortune's slave.
Let not the whims of circumstance
Be what delights my soul,
For circumstance is fickle friend,
And brings no joy that's whole.

Lord, please fill my heart with joy:
For health, when found alone,
Or earth's success, without You, proves
Unsure as gods of stone.
I crave a joy of grander depth,
One strong through war and pain--
That joy set firm through knowing You,
Where all at last is gain.

Lord, please fill my heart with joy:
I may be rich or poor,
But let me never fail to hear
Your knocking on my door.
Let all my joy be based in this:
That You are still my Lord,
That You gave all You had for me,
And hold my true reward.

Lord, please fill my heart with joy:
May zeal to do Your will,
And hear Your voice and seek Your face,
My thoughts and actions fill.
Let all my peace and love of life
Be found in You alone,
Preparing me for purest joy
One day before Your Throne!