Irony: Filling a Hole with Holiness

Sometimes, I think humans walk around with holes in their hearts.

And all of us look for ways to fill them up. 

Sometimes we stay very busy, too busy for God, when we have a hurt or an emptiness inside, because being busy makes us forget that hole. Sometimes we try to fill it up with alcohol or partying. Sometimes we try to fill it up with money or shopping. Sometimes we try to fill it up with the surge we feel when flirting or engaging in sex. But every time we try to fill up the hole in these ways, we are left wanting, needing to fill up again.

I remember a girl friend of mine telling me that when you are sad, when you feel down about your job, Melissa, just go shopping! She said that when she went home after a long day of teaching ninth graders in the inner-city, she would just eat and eat and eat. I would watch TV and shop. I realized that I was filling my time with things I thought would fill the hole. 

In college, I prided myself on the number of friends I had because that meant I was loved. But I couldn’t shake the thoughts that I wasn’t truly loved, I still felt empty. I thought no one would ever truly love me, so I would push and push and push people to prove that they loved me and in turn this often pushed them away. I thought that if only I found the right person, if only I had the perfect job, if only I had a new family, if only I had the perfect haircut, if only I was recognized for my talent, then I would be full. 

But I was never full. Only a fool. 

But I have learned through studying God’s word that that hole can’t be filled by the world. I had to realize that God truly loved me. I mean, duh, right? I knew he loved me. I said it sometimes, but I never truly BELIEVED it! It wasn’t an easy thing to convince my heart of this, and my heart still at times tries to rebel against that love, but I choose to believe in the love I know I have for God and he has for me. It is a choice. You just choose to believe. Godly love isn’t a feeling and it can’t go away. It gives us peace and it helps to change our lives for the better. God so loved the world, that he gave his only son. Not only does he forgive our sins, he forgets them. He hears our prayers and answers them. He gives us wisdom and direction. He definitely loves me...and you. 

So the passage I am including for this one doesn’t necessarily sing praise for God’s love, but Psalms does that often and very well: “His love endures forever.” But it somehow seems to fit and I am inspired to write it – so here it is. 

1 Peter 5: 6-11

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in the time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of suffering. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast. To him be the power forever and ever.”

He restores us because he loves us! Restores us – like fills our hearts. See the connection?