What are we looking for?

I was reading my morning Psalm today, and I stopped in the middle of the passage, because I knew I had hit paydirt. It's a question that reveals a lot about what we are doing with our lives.

In Psalm 39, David remembers how short a human life is. He is beset by enemies, and he cries out to God to be saved from from them. Then, in verse 7, he reflects,
"Now... what am I looking for?" 
What a question! Confucius is known to have said that the better questions you ask, the nearer you are to the truth. In this case, David has asked a question that gets to the core of our lives. This question centers us: what am I looking for?

Sure, I might be looking for money, influence, relationships, entertainment, and other things. But what am I looking for that gives shape to how I approach these other goods?

Jesus knew how to go straight to the center of a person. He once said, "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:21). His implied question is: where is your treasure? In other words, what are you looking for?

In the last week, in the midst of hardships mostly perpetuated by myself, I have returned to the center of my life with God. I have asked, what am I looking for? The answer: I have an insatiable hunger for God. That's why I am a Christian. That's why I care about my faith. That's why I'm a pastor. That's why I write. That's why I love people. These are ways to let this God-hunger express itself in the world. A lot of other people are hungry for God, and when I talk about it, they respond, and we have great conversations. I saw God-hunger in a group of homeless folks I prayed with last week. I saw it on Sunday morning at Sanctuary. I see it all over the place. God put the God-hunger within us. It's up to us to build our lives in such a way that we stoke that flame. Instead of being dragged along through our days, we ask, "How can I do this or that in such a way that I am in touch with my hunger for God?"

What am I looking for? On my good days, and in the moments when I am truest to myself, I am looking for God. That's what David's center was too.
But now, Lord, what am I looking for? My hope is in you. (Psalm 39:7, NIV) 

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