Valentine's for Singles - Pt 2

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. (John 7:37-39 ESV).

Let’s get a little more specific today, both for those who are single and married. Valentine’s Day can be a day to remember the call to contentment. When you’re on a diet, does it help you to look at pictures of food, or does it make you even more weak, hungry, and miserable and more likely to cave to your cravings? For me, it’s the latter. Looking at what we long for but cannot help but stir up feelings in us we cannot satisfy. It causes us to feel drained, despondent, and worse still, discontent. Longing for companionship, romance, marriage, and sex is not in itself wrong. God himself created these gifts so we would enjoy them (cf. Genesis 2:18; Proverbs 5:18; Song of Solomon; 1 Corinthians 7:5; 1 Timothy 4:4; 6:17). Desiring these good things and feeling loneliness and sadness without them is natural. It is not necessarily sinful. It is being human the way God created us to be. But for those who are single, these yearnings remain unfulfilled. As a result, it is difficult not to other things that can be destructive. Those are those habits that won’t lead to marriage and cannot fulfill God’s design in our lives. They are the vain attempts to satisfy the voids in our hearts. When we are in a state of weakness, verging on the precipice of discontentment or even dissatisfaction with God, these activities can quickly become dangers. Through fruitless relationships we can exploit other people to get the emotional security we crave without seeking to love and honor them above ourselves. For many single people, the cheap pleasures of pornography or other sexual experiences become most alluring when they feel discontent. But even good things can become dangers when you use them to quench your loneliness. They make you laugh, have a good time, and forget your sorrows for a moment, but when these fleeting pleasures fade you will feel more aware of your alone-ness. For Christians, this should not be the case. We can combat this disappointment and loneliness by turning to the only one who can fulfill us… Jesus Christ. He is the only source of happiness which will never disappoint us and never leave us feeling discontent (cf. Jeremiah 2:13). Jesus invites all of us to drink deeply from the well that will satisfy our real thirst.