In Matthew 5:6, Jesus says, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” Here we are in the land of plenty, having more than we could ever need, yet our longings ever remain. Why? Could it be that we don’t hunger and thirst for the right things? Could it be what we actually eat and drink leave us hungrier and thirstier?

I think this thought from Gospel Treason articulates our problem well:

Imagine that your adrift in a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean. Your tongue clings to the roof of your mouth, your throat is parched, and your lips are cracked and bleeding. You are dying for a drink of water while surrounded by it.

The problem is, if you give into that temptation, if you lean over the side of the boat and gulp down mouthfuls of that water, you will feel an immediate sense of relief and satisfaction that will quickly be followed by a ravaging thirst but is far worse than what you had before.

That’s what we’re facing in our world today – especially here in America. It’s as though we were in a boat surrounded by what looks like refreshing, thirst-quenching water, but it’s full of salt. Everything outside of God in Christ is salt water, and it only leaves you thirstier than you were before.

May we all hunger and thirst for that which does satisfy, Jesus himself.