DAILY BYTE
Live beyond the boxes by being full.
Emptiness seems to abound.
It is no mistake that we are known as a ‘consumer society’ because it seems that as much as we consume, we still never seem to have enough. We earn, we spend, we shop, we eat, we drink, we party, we holiday, all in a futile attempt to try and fill up our emptiness.
Jesus emphatically challenged us to live beyond society’s boxes in this quest for fullness. That instead of turning to money, or food, or anything else on this earth, we should instead turn to God alone to fill us.
Jesus said that he was the Bread of Life, and that by trusting in Him we would experience not only eternal life, but also a life that was abundantly full.
We need to consider carefully what we trust in to give our life meaning. However, this is easier said than done because so many of the things we trust in to give us fulFILLment are very subtle and hard to recognise.
It is not always something as obvious as money, shopping or food. It could be anything from success to popularity to our looks. It is extremely important though that we work on recognising these futile attempts at fulfilment for what they are. This is so we might begin to give them up to God and learn to trust in Him alone to give our lives meaning and purpose.
If you had to give thought to it … what would be the kind of things you may be trusting in to fill your life? Perhaps it is time you began to challenge those issues within yourself and hand them over to God.
Hear the call of Jesus offering you fullness of life and put all of your trust in him.
PRAY AS YOU GO
Lord God, giver of life and all good things, we confess to you how often we search and scrabble for our life’s fulfilment in all the wrong places. We look for it in money, possessions, success, popularity, work, sex, family, food and drink. Help us to recognise that trusting in these things only leads to an increased emptiness. We ask that Jesus would instead become the centre and circumference of our lives and that he would be our food and drink. Help us to make our relationship with you our life’s highest and truest priority.
In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.
FOCUS READING
John 10:7-18 (NIV)
Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
