Article

The Perfect Wave

By Pastor Eric Everhart

Growing up on the East Coast, I spent most of my teenage years on the beach. Not a professional by any means, but a very avid surfer. I spent much of my time in the salty water of the Atlantic with my surfboard in hand. I’m pretty sure I spent more time in the water than I did in my classrooms at school (not recommended). Summer, winter, fall, it didn’t matter; we were each searching for the same thing—that perfect wave. We traveled up and down the east coast, Australia, Hawaii, and just about every other place on earth searching for and longing for the wave of a lifetime. We slept in cars, on the beach, ate fast food every day, and drove many miles chasing the ride that would satisfy our hunger. This longing consumed us, and it became the only important thing—to catch the perfect wave!

While in Hawaii, my “perfect” day arrived. I got the opportunity to surf the famous Banzai Pipeline in Pupukea with a few of my local friends. It was a perfect day, the sets were rolling in steady at 10 feet, and the curl was terrific. The beautiful blue water glistened in the sun, and if you closed your eyes, you could hear the sound of the waves pounding on the edge of the beach as they rolled in. I surfed for almost 2 hours that day, one perfect wave after another…was this heaven? I had finally chased down the ideal day, the perfect wave, and I was so “full.” Or was I?

I was content for a while, but after a couple of days passed, that longing for the perfect wave came back. The desire to pursue the next perfect set grabbed hold of me. How could that be? I had my perfect day. I was “full”! That feeling of emptiness set in and the chase began again.
How about you? What are you chasing? Money, work, relationships, success, sports, popularity, college, or fame? Where are you trying to find fulfillment? Although these things are not bad or wrong in and of themselves, your only truly FULFILLMENT comes in your relationship with Jesus Christ. There is a God-shaped hole inside each of us that only God can fill. There is not a single thing in this world that can fill that hole—not money, work, not even surfing the perfect wave!

To find fulfillment, we must first seek, long for, chase after, and hunger for the “Source of Life” Jesus Christ. Matthew 6:33 clearly shows us our source of life: “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Catching the “Source of Life” provides unending, eternal, and perfect FULFILLMENT. When we focus all that we are on Jesus Christ, he does amazing things in our lives. Jesus loves each of us so dearly and he is full of the wisdom, love, peace, and joy that we need each day to be “FULL.” Ephesians 3:19 says, “This love…surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”

Can you be any more filled than full? NO, you can’t. Where are you finding fulfillment?

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