replenish – Praying Pint

41.l. “Reflect on this past year”

Psalms 107:9 For He satisfies the longing soul, And fills the hungry soul with goodness.

Isaiah 55:1-3   “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.  Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.  Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.

Jeremiah 31:25    For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.”

Matthew 5:6     “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Luke 1:53    he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty.

Revelation 7:16-17 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.  For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

What fills your desires? What consumes your time? What defines the purpose of your life? What are you chasing after? Could it be that you are chasing after things in this world to fill the void and emptiness in your soul?

When we give thought to what drives us and satisfies our soul and fills us with purpose, it is eternally important that we identify that longing within us as spiritual and godly hunger. Billy Graham, often said that this longing for purpose is the ultimate intent of our creator. It is a void (space/emptiness) inside each of us. It’s that void that many people try to fill with wealth, possessions, sex, drugs, alcohol, sports, gambling, power, beauty, work, recognition, etc…… They search for their purpose or significance to fill this void by every possible means but do so in vain.

The problem is, things that seem right in our eyes and even the culture that we live in are the things that will never fill this void. Our natural intents are toward every conceivable idea that seems right and has been confirmed by all means possible by others who say this is how they found purpose and satisfaction in their lives. The problem is that all of these attempts mask it, cover it with brief moments of satisfaction but will always fall short of putting one drop of soul-satisfying nourishment into this void. The only way to satisfy it is with more of the same or trying something different, but in the end, they lead you right back to where you were, or worse. The world offers what it can never give. The problem is that these may be brought to us through temptations by Satan and we are easily tempted by them, or worse we are not even tempted, we just choose to close our minds to things of God. Satan does not need to tempt us at all. How sad is that?

God stands at the door of our hearts, knocking. He offers forgiveness of sin. He fills those who repent, believe, trust, follow, and obey His Word to come into them and give them living water and the bread of life, not only now but for eternity. He promises to fill them with the Holy Spirit. To those who keep their eyes and focus on Him with the single purpose of honoring and glorifying Jesus Christ, he promises to fill this void with the fruits of the Holy Spirit, love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. To these, their longing for purpose and satisfaction has not only filled but it is overflowing continually. You may think this is not true and how can this satisfy the emptiness I am feeling deep within my soul? It is a promise of God. He never lies. He loved us so much that He gave His only Son to redeem us. He gave us the written Word of God to encourage, convict, and lead us to the very point of exposing the void in our hearts with a purpose and satisfaction this world can never do. Intentionally choose to examine your heart in light of God’s Word and what satisfies it and gives your purpose. If you find an emptiness or void open the door to your heart and purpose to honor and glorify Jesus Christ anew with all you think, say, and do.

31.l. “For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness”

Psalm 107:9 “For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness” (, NKJV).

Isaiah 55:1-3   “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.  Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.  Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live;

Jeremiah 31:14   my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, declares the LORD.”

Jeremiah 31:25   For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.”

Matthew 5:6   “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Revelation 7:16-17  They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.  For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Do you ever wonder why there are so many self-help, self-satisfaction, and finding self-purpose books being written, published, marketed, and being sold? There are tens of thousands out there. You would think if there are this many books out there someone would find the solution to these longings in our soul and that these longs are very real.

Billy Graham, said something like this; “There’s a place inside each individual, that if it is continually being filled will satisfy our inner soul. This is a reserved place for God and His Word in our lives. It is a place where true and lasting satisfaction, peace, joy, strength, and purpose find a residence in our hearts and minds. This is the place reserved for God alone in our lives. Many people try to fill this place with wealth, possessions, sex, drugs, alcohol or work, but do so in vain. They long to fill this place/void in their soul. It is the place where purpose, contentment, inner peace, happiness, fulfillment, joy, etc…. are only fully satisfied when we hunger, desire, thirst, and long for God. Only God can fill it and continually refresh it to overflowing abundance.

The problem is, the things of this world (wealth, possessions, sex, drugs, alcohol, or work) are fleeting, they’re broken, and they’ll eventually let you down. Money and possessions can be ripped away from you in a moment. Relationships falter. Drugs and alcohol wear off and leave you right back where you were, or worse.

God is the One who refreshes our soul and dwells in our innermost self, meeting those needs and desires that seem to be so elusive. We hunger for Him, and only He alone can satisfy. There is darkness and void in our soul when anything other than God is being put into it. There is light for the soul when this place is filled and continually refreshed by God.

When God is rejected, put aside, neglected, marginalized, or denied there is no light for our soul. Though He may quietly whisper; “come to Me and I will give you rest”, our ears deafen and our hearts harden to His repeated calls of salvation, redemption, forgiveness, and eternal life. It is in this rejection of His grace, mercy, and love when we turn to something else to fill the void of God in our lives. All the Holy Spirit-filled joy, peace, strength, hope, love, purpose, and true contentment we could have in our lives is discarded for worldly ideas of the same but which will never accomplish.

Blessings this side of eternity

“But know that the LORD has set apart the godly for himself; the LORD hears when I call to him.”

“For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.”

“They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Psalms 65:4 Blessed is the one you choose and bring near, to dwell in your courts! We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, the holiness of your temple!

Psalms 33:12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!

Psalms 84:4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise!

Psalms 106:4 Remember me, O LORD, when you show favor to your people; help me when you save them, that I may look upon the prosperity of your chosen ones, that I may rejoice in the gladness of your nation, that I may glory with your inheritance.

Ephesians 1:4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.

2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.

Psalms 23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Psalms 17:15 As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.

Revelation 21:3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

What does it mean to be blessed? How are we blessed? When are we blessed? Who is blessed? Why are they blessed? It is easy to get confused with these questions even if we have knowledge and understanding of God’s word. Part of the confusion comes with our thinking that being blessed will always mean wealth, comfort, health, lacking little, and not experiencing trials/issues. From the fall of man we are told “cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Life is going to have emotional and physical pain associated with it but this does not mean we are not blessed. Some of life’s pain comes from consequences of our actions and some from actions of others. Our bodies, this side of eternity, are not immortal. However this does not mean we are not blessed. Life this side of eternity is but a vapor – here for a brief time and then gone. God has given us many great and precious promises to navigate this side of eternity with hope, love, joy, rest, comfort, power, strength, and courage. These are blessings freely given from and through God’s steadfast love. They are given to those who seek, listen, follow, honor, humbly serve, obey, trust, rely on, believe in and love Him. These blessings are but a glimpse of what eternity will be like with Him. Often we are miss guided by the thoughts and culture of our time. Our expectations this side of eternity are not in line with God’s word. Our thoughts and focus lose sight of eternity. To often we listen to those who give God no thought and/or we listen to those who water down God’s word. To often we spend no time in His word for the purpose of knowing and understanding Him so that we can humbly serve and honor Him. To often we neglect the very thing that can add meaning and purpose to our lives. How true scriptures states: “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith.” Turn to God, not for what you can get but rather for who He is. Spend time in His word and seeking Him and how to honor Him this side of eternity.