Why does entertainment fascinate the human spirit? Why do certain movies capture our imaginations? It’s because there is something in our human fabric that longs to be transported beyond our mundane living. Hollywood tries to grab our dreams and passions through films—drama, adventure, romance—and does a fairly good job. But these are just counterfeits of the real drama, adventure, and romance that are a part of God’s design.
One of the biggest problems the church faces right now is spiritual boredom. Why? Because believers were never made for a program, an institution, or a weekly pew-warming ceremony. Christians were never made to be satisfied by a three-point outline that contains just enough advice to get over the “hump” of the week. The human heart was made for passion. It was created for relationship. It was designed to experience the adventure of living life with God and enjoying Him.
I believe there is an insatiable desire for adventure in most men. Some women have it too. This desire was placed there by God and was designed to be fulfilled by Him. But instead of letting Him fulfill their deepest desires, many believers try to bury them and just survive. They settle for a lifestyle that falls far short of Raiders of the Lost Ark. Their lifestyle often involves a cubicle, a nine-to-five job, and a commute back and forth to work.
Left unsatisfied, the hunger for adventure manifests itself in different forms. Men become sports enthusiasts in their quest for adventure. They track the statistics of major league baseball players, follow the March Madness of college basketball, and with pride wear jerseys bearing the numbers of celebrity athletes. Some become biking enthusiasts or acquire all the latest camping gear for a weekend getaway in the mountains. In essence, they live out their craving for adventure in their off time or through the lives of others. That’s one reason stadiums are packed, Monday Night Football has such a huge following, and the Super Bowl is, well, the Super Bowl.
Just as men were made for adventure, women were made for romance. They long for deep, intimate, heart-dancing relationships. Thus, women read romantic novels, watch romantic movies, and wait for their knight in shining armor to appear. Whether watching a “chick flick” or reading a best-selling novel about the undying love between hero and heroine, most women have a soft spot for story and intrigue. They long for true love and passionate expression. Something deep within women’s hearts craves romance.
Some men enjoy romance, and some women seek adventure—so the lines are not hard and fast—but the general stereotypes reverberate loudly. Whether you long for romance or adventure or both, God created those desires. They were instilled within you from the time you were born.
But while the longing for fulfillment and pleasure is a universal human experience designed by God, we should never try to satisfy this longing with anything less than what will provide us with the deepest satisfaction.
Julian of Norwich once prayed, “God, of your goodness give me yourself, for you are enough for me….If I ask for anything which is less, always I am in want; but only in you do I have everything.”1
C.S. Lewis, one of the most popular writers of the twentieth century, once said that if you find yourself with a desire that no experience in this world can satisfy, then the most probable explanation is that you were made for another world. Can I tell you something? You were. You were made for another world, another reality. Your greatest happiness, fulfillment, and pleasure will only be found in the heart of God!
We read in Proverbs 20:27 that “the spirit of man is the candle of the Lord” (KJV). A candle is only beeswax until it is lit. It can be highly processed beeswax, but it’s beeswax nonetheless. The human spirit, with all its yearnings, remains unfulfilled until it’s lit by the divine flame.
Your heavenly Father never wanted you to live a life of perpetual boredom. Man-made religion is boring. But living with God is meant to be enjoyable. Always remember that He is ravished by you. Live loved!
This blog is taken from S. J.’s book, ENJOYING GOD, Experiencing the Love of Your Heavenly Father, published by Passio, Charisma Media/Charisma House Book Group.
1. Julian of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love (London: Methuen, 1911), 12.
