Very few Christians feel their disappointment with life deeply enough to fix their hope on what is yet to come. Even fewer face their sin so thoroughly that forgiveness becomes their most valued blessing. Most Christians vaguely sense that they long for so much more than what they experience on a daily basis, and they suppress a terror that no one could know them fully and still want to be their friend.
And the truth is that the deepest longing of our soul will never be satisfied on this side of heaven. Why are we so afraid of sadness? We should not fear being sad. When we face the sin that is rooted deep within our hearts; when we look at the hidden sin in our hearts it makes us see who we really are and sometimes we are undelightful. We should not fear brokenness. We should allow the pain of disappointed longings and the guilt of terrible sin to drive us to consider the gospel of God’s grace in a new and deeper way. Only then will the Lord enter into our broken hearts deeply and change us from the inside out, instilling in us a growing awareness of His relentless, unfailing love and sustaining hope for a new day.
Larry Crabb
