Ein Geddi in Israel

Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters;
And you who have no money come, buy and eat.
Come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without cost.
“Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?

Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
And delight yourself in abundance.
“Incline your ear and come to Me.
Listen, that you may live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
According to the faithful mercies shown to David. Isaiah 55:1-3

Every week, Keith and I go to the grocery store and spend hard-earned money on food. We eat a meal, and a few hours later, we’re hungry again. The next week, we repeat the trip to the store.

We fill our tanks with gas.  We purchase clothes that represent our professions. We put on the lifestyle that our families, friends, neighbors and coworkers expect of us.

We show our happy lives on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Some of us even blog about it.

Does anyone post a photo on Facebook that shows our sinful nature? What about our unhappy times? I tend to post things that demonstrate that I have it all together.

Seems empty.

What if God provided all that we need to be satisfied, or as our Italian landlord once said, “Molto content”?

God has provided more than satisfaction. He has provided a promise to wipe away all our sins. The promise includes living with Him forever. The promise includes an abundant life now. The promise includes satisfaction.

This promise is a free gift, but there is a cost: you must step out in authenticity.

5 Steps to Authentic Satisfaction

1. Come. God beckons us to come to Him in our hunger and thirst. We can only come to the Father through Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross. “Jesus said, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me.’” John 14:6
2. Buy. We have nothing to offer Him except our broken lives. He takes those lives and nourishes them with Living Water and the Bread of Life, Jesus. “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.” Revelation 22:17
3. Listen. We are commanded to listen attentively to Him, to listen with the intention of acting and obeying Him “Then a voice came out of the cloud, saying, ‘This is My Son, My Chosen One; listen to Him!’” Luke 9:35
4. Eat. As we read God’s Word and abide in Jesus, we are nourished by the Bread of Life and the Living Water. “Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.’” John 6:35
5. Delight. When I take pleasure in the things of God, He will give me the desires of my heart. This verse can also be read that God gives me the desires that conform to His will. Either way, I delight in that! “Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4

3 Steps to Authentic Restoration

Seek the Lord while He may be found;
Call upon Him while He is near.

Let the wicked forsake his way
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
And let him return to the Lord,
And He will have compassion on him,
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon. Isaiah 55:6-7

In our hunger, we seek satisfaction; we come; we seek God; we call upon Him; we buy with our brokenness, and we listen. He tells us our next steps:

1. Forsake your way. Remember that you are a new creation in Jesus, turn from the inauthentic life, and do the things you did when you were a new Christian. Did you fellowship with other believers, study the Bible, and pray? Do it again. “Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place—unless you repent.” Revelation 2:5
2. Forsake your thoughts. Take your thoughts captive. Meditate on the Bread of Life and His words. “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” Philippians 4:8
3. Return. Return to Jesus. He has paid the price of your sins, my sins, and the world’s sins. In Him, we can rest. “Return to your rest, O my soul, For the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.“ Psalm 116:7

Abundant spiritual provision and abundant pardon.

That is the way of a satisfied life, an all-together life. 

That is the way of the authentic Christian life. 

My prayer:

Father, You have provided all that we need or could ever want. You have given us the desires of our hearts. You know us better than we know ourselves. Search our ways and our thoughts, renew our minds and transform our ways to Your ways, our thoughts to be more like Your thoughts. We hunger and thirst for the Bread of Life, the Living Water. We long for more awareness of Jesus living in us and the freedom that this knowledge brings us. You have dealt bountifully with us. We come to You. Lead us by the right hand in an authentic walk with You and with our brothers and sisters. Amen

Please share the steps you are taking to ensure your walk with Jesus is authentic.