A Twitter video short captured a baby hearing his mother for the first time after receiving hearing aids. When his mother spoke to him, he started to smile. But as the sounds registered, emotion overwhelmed his tiny features.
Why would a baby, who’d never heard any voice before, be overcome the first time he heard his mother’s? Had he longed to understand his mother’s moving lips as I’ve wanted to understand my dog’s imploring eyes? Can we miss something we’ve never experienced?
I think we’ve all felt that mysterious longing for something beyond our reach. This reminded me of great thinkers who’ve described this longing.
- “If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world.” C. S. Lewis”
.- “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of each man which cannot be satisfied by any created thing but only by God the Creator, made known through Jesus Christ.” Blaise Pascal
.- “O God, you made us for yourself and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.” Augustine
.- “Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.” (Hebrews 11:16 NIV)
The Longing
There seems to be a longing in every human heart for something our hands and minds can’t grasp. But those who walk with God receive tastes like the baby who received his hearing.
“But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets.” (1 Corinthians 2:10 NLT)
As we approach Easter I think of the disciples who’d seen—
- Jesus heal the lame and the blind
- Demons submit in Jesus’ name
- Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead
- Jesus stump the learned religious leaders
But the hours leading to the crucifixion would turn their world upside down.
- One of their own would betray Jesus.
- Their religious leaders would mock and break their own laws to condemn Him.
- The justice system would betray justice.
- Their Lord would be crucified.
- The voice of the One they loved would be silenced.
For three days, they would live in the darkness of lost hope; in the death that separated them from their Lord. Have you been there? Can you feel their despair?
For three days, the disciples lived in the darkness of lost hope and the death that separated them from their Lord. Have you been there? But their despair was about to change. #Easter, #hope Click To TweetI’m thankful I live on the other side of Calvary. But it helps to remember there would be no Easter without Good Friday. In this life, we must walk through our own paths of darkness.
“For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)” (Romans 8:22-25 NLT)
Because of Easter, death is never the end of the story for the believer. Those in Christ Jesus are promised a resurrection. Life triumphs over the grave. Light dispels the darkness.
Because of Easter Paul could write:
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
for those who love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9 NLT)
The baby’s amazement at hearing his mother’s voice foreshadows the thrill we’ll experience when we finally see Jesus. It will be better than we can imagine.
Comment here.
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A thriving relationship with God is not built on our perfect performance but on our trust in a gracious Savior.
Next week, we’ll pick up on our DARTS series.
Blessings,
Sometimes I link with these great sites:
#InstaEncouragements, #TellHisStory, #Let’sHaveCoffee, #Grace&Truth
Easter is truly our doorway to hope! Blessings to you and yours as you celebrate resurrection in your home!
Thank you, Michele! And to you and yours.
AMEN Debbie!!!! Wishing you and your family a blessed and beautiful Resurrection Day!!
Thank you, Ann. God bless you and your family!
Yearning for the day of no more pain, no more suffering, no more death. Thanks, Debbie. God bless!
Amen and Amen! Thanks, Nancy.
Love this Debbie! Have a blessed Easter!
Thank you, Kim. I hope you and your family enjoy a special Easter.
What a beautiful reminder of what Jesus has done for us in His willingness to go to the cross. Because of His resurrection, He conquered death, so as you reminded us – death is not the end. It’s the beginning of a life, the likes of which we can’t even imagine. What a great God and wonderful Savior we have! When we are tempted to despair, we need to remember the cross, the resurrection and look forward to the glorious life that awaits us with our Lord. Blessings to you! I’m your neighbor at #LetsHaveCoffee.
Gayl, the older I get the more I appreciate what He has accomplished for us. We have so much to look forward to!
Thank you, Debbie for such a beautiful Easter post! So filled with Hope, and I enjoyed sitting here basking in the truth of your (God’s!) words.
May you and your family enjoy the blessed Resurrection Sunday!
Thank you, Donna. I hope the same for you and your family!
This is such a hope-filled message. “In this life, we must walk through our own paths of darkness.” Easter fills us with hope of possibilities in and through Christ Jesus. Have a blessed Easter, Debbie.
Thank you, Joanne. You too!
Enjoyed this so much Debbie! Wonderful insight into how we feel in this life! So thankful for Jesus and his sacrifice to save us!
Yes, so very thankful for Jesus! Thanks, Connie.
Yes Lord,
We will love your appearing!
Gina ❤️
Amen! Have a wonderful Easter!
Those videos make me cry.
I do long for all the suffering of this world to dim as we reach our heavenly home. Thank you Debbie. Blessings on your Easter.
Me too, Yvonne! The longing grows more intense as the darkness seems to get thicker. Have a blessed Easter!
Debbie, this is beautiful. We’ll never be totally complete until we satisfy our thirst for Him.
Yes. And we must keep drinking from that well. Thanks, Candyce.
Debbie, this is a beautiful message that makes me long for even more for my Father. But I know He’s with me as I wait for my real home.
I know. Maybe it’s my age or the times we live in, but the longing sure seems to be more intense.
So very sorry I was unable to get to read this before Easter my friend. Nevertheless, I’m always encouraged by your God-honoring posts. Thank you, and thank You Lord for the hope you have given me.
J.D., thank you! You are a faithful friend and encourager. I appreciate you.