Can’t get no satisfaction

Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty. For the Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself. (1 Samuel 12:20-22)

The people of Israel asked for a king because they wanted to be like the other nations. They felt left out, like they were missing out on something great. I have done the very same thing. I thought that if I had sex I would gain something important–fill in a gap somewhere. How wrong I was…

Why is it that we have a natural inclination to pursue things that will not satisfy us? And even after having the experience and realizing that it didn’t satisfy, we keep going after it in hopes that next time will be different. It never is.

Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in rich food. (Isaiah 55:2)