Counterfeit

Dear Beloved,

Have you ever had a conversation with a person who was stuck in the “I feel so empty” mindset? Have you ever been a person stuck in that mindset? I know that I was never satisfied with the way my life was. It felt like nothing I was doing mattered. So I started to overwork myself. I said yes to everything and everyone. I filled my life with such artificial junk and when I had an opportunity to pour into someone all that came out was… fluff.

I had a conversation with my lady pastor about how before babies are born on earth they are completely surrounded by the spirit of the Lord. So much so that they don’t know anything else but God. I believe that is the root of our desire. For example, take the addictive feeling of a church camp. When you’re dancing in a sea of people and your heart is burning and you start crying… You never want to leave. If that is addictive, imagine just the Lord’s presence. No fog. No lights. No sea of people. Just being completely vulnerable and transparent with Him. God is abounding in love, trust, patience, grace, mercy, gentleness, kindness, and so much more. When that is all we know before we are thrust into a world full of brokenness part of us will always long to return to the divine.

It’s like if your eyes suddenly stopped working you would stumble around feeling for any hint of familiarity. If we don’t have solid people to guide us towards God, that’s where things go wrong. We crave God’s love and when we can’t find it, we are often left with lust. That alone leads to abandonment issues, trust issues, and a general lack of self-worth.

There is however good news to this. “…Those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” John 4:14. There is only one thing in all of existence that can quench our thirst for the divine things… and that is returning to the divine himself.

We see this again in John 6 when Jesus is talking with the crowd on the shore. They asked him what they could do to perform God’s works. Jesus responds with “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.” The crowd goes on to ask him for a reason to “believe” in him. Verses 30 - 35 says, “So they asked him, "What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" Jesus said to them, "Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." "Sir," they said, "always give us this bread." Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

So many people spend their lives chasing the rush. We use all of our time to chase the real raw truth… only to end up with the counterfiet. We must filter what we allow into our lives because the devil knows how to disguise. (That rhymed!)