FINDING SATISFACTION AT THANKSGIVING

by Marcie Bridges, @Marcie_Bridges

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

for they shall be satisfied.
Matthew 5:6

SATISFY ME, LORD

Satisfy me in the morning Lord
with Your goodness and grace.

Satisfy me in the afternoon
when my day feels like a waste.

Satisfy me in the evening Lord
as I sit tired with worry and care.

Satisfy me Lord, with You,
not the things of this world.

~Marcell Warner Bridges
©11/13/2017

Dissatisfaction. Incompleteness. Longing. Desires. Want. Lack of…

Her question griped my heart. “What does it mean to be satisfied? What can satisfy our souls?”

My thoughts wandered around. Thinking of things in my life that feel so . . . what’s the word I’m looking for? Empty? No, not quite. Dissatisfactory? Yeahhh. Getting closer.

I can’t really put my finger on the right words to use. But, I think you might know what I’m talking about. That gnawing in your stomach that leaves your heart feeling a bit hungry but nothing seems to satisfy it?

It’s so hard to give thanks to the Lord when we feel like a tumbleweed blowing through the desert. We yearn for contentment and think if we could just find that contentment, then maybe, maybe we can find a thankful spirit within us.

But did you know that thankfulness comes BEFORE contentment? In fact, when we find thanks in everything, we not only find our contentment, we also find satisfaction.

What? No way! You’re thinking. Not even close. Come on Marcie, you’ve totally lost it.

It’s true. Satisfaction and contentment go hand-in-hand with thanksgiving.

Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Did you see that? Thanksgiving comes before peace. I can be having the worst day, but then when I stop and think of the things I’m grateful for, the attitude of my heart begins to change. I calm down. I begin to think clearer. I smile a bit and then next thing I know, my heart feels more peaceful, content, and yes, satisfied.

Not because I got what I wanted. Not because I got a new car or a new house. A better this or a something I’ve yearned for for a long time. No, nothing can satisfy like God can.

When we hunger and thirst after God — righteousness — and we make Him the priority in our lives, then we find satisfaction. Everything else pales in comparison when God is our focus.

I have to admit when she asked what word comes to mind when we hear the word “satisfy” my first thought was: Snickers. Ha! But you know what, a Snicker’s bar may fill my belly for a few hours but it will never fill me the way God’s Word can. The way His love will.

And you know what else? He gives us the living water that will keep us from thirsting. He will fill us up more than any material thing or any food.

I love Thanksgiving. I love Thanks-living. I love how God gives us all we need exactly when we need it. When we seek Him, we will find Him. And when we find Him, we have everything we’ll ever need.

May Jesus fill you with His love this week as you find your Thanksgiving in Him.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

From My Heart to Yours,

Marcie