Valentine's Day. That oh so special day. It comes but once a year. You'd have to be an idiot to not see it coming. The jewelry commercials, the love songs, candy everywhere. Balloons. Flowers. Red. Red. Red.
Chocolate.
Measuring in the tons.
It is a sweet holiday, kids love it. Moms adore it. Guys sorta like it, if it means a little extra affection. We shower our kids with heart shaped boxes and bears holding treats. Sweethearts spend days planning special dates. It really does bring out the best in people.
Wish everyday could be Valentine's Day. Could you imagine, having that kind of excitement and anticipation to look forward to. The funny things is, it comes and it goes. Just like every other longed for event. How can we keep the thrill and excitement for longer than one day? How do we make it last?
Feelings are so fleeting and iffy. We, as a race are so fickle and I can surely empathize with the masses. It's like everything in life. We strive and struggle, set goals and achieve them, just to set some more. Where is the contentment? When can we finally say, "This is it. I'm good."
Not going to lie, I have moments of clarity, every so often. A certain feeling will come over me and I'll think;
Feelings are so fleeting and iffy. We, as a race are so fickle and I can surely empathize with the masses. It's like everything in life. We strive and struggle, set goals and achieve them, just to set some more. Where is the contentment? When can we finally say, "This is it. I'm good."
Not going to lie, I have moments of clarity, every so often. A certain feeling will come over me and I'll think;
'this is the moment...right now. this is it. life could not get any better.'
Seriously, have had those. On many occasions. Darned thing is though, can't seem to make it last. Why is that? We all know about positive out equals positive in, but there has to be more to it than that. Than a simple belief that if I think good, only good will come to me. That is an Eastern Philosophy mindset, that has been extremely popular for ages and ages. In fact it's older that great grandma's pickled herring.
On the surface it holds quite an attractive appeal. It loves nature and the human race as a whole. It sees only beauty and spreads sweet smelling liquid warmth. It yearns for and emanates peace. It also cares very much about the 'self'. Oneness with the universe...and again the 'self' is a major priority. To be more specific, the happiness and contentment of ones own self it the key proponent to successfully mastering this belief system.
Therein lies the problem. I'm not saying you shouldn't love yourself. You should. God created us all in His image. We ARE in essence love, if we are nothing else. It's the pursuit of self fulfillment, i.e., happiness at any cost that is the curse of this mind set. It is this path and endless search for the ultimate happiness that leads to such emptiness. If it were that simple, don't you think the pharmaceutical companies would be out of business. Why is it that in this great land of ours, with such resources and opportunity...freedoms other nations only dream of...are we suffering so deeply from a lack. A lack that we can hardly fathom let alone contain.
We search for this 'filling' in numerous ways. The cars, the houses the jewelry the trips the relationships the drugs the food the drink the sex. It's all obtainable and easily accessible. Yet, this lacking persists.
I know for me, this lacking was big. Huge. Quite frankly, it was epic in my life. If I was blessed with little, I wanted more. One in each color. Two, if I really had my way. And guess what? The 'happiness' was fleeting. Go figure.
I grew up poor. Like seriously, we were not in a shelter and somehow we managed to eat. But let me tell you, there was not much. In the monetary sense. I married young, and after a few short years my husband earned a really good living. I grew accustomed to a nice life style. It got comfortable. Yet....
Still, the lacking. What the heck was missing? Because we had plenty of everything. Except possibly, the knowledge of where it all really came from. The blessing of a good job and healthy kids. That's what it was. A blessing, indeed. And so not deserved and unfortunately not recognized.
Trust me, when it's gone, you quickly realize where it came from to begin with. And when it's all gone and your empty...that's when the fulfillment comes. If you let it. Because God cannot come into your dirty, littered, overflowing to the top, little self, when there is no room for Him. It's in the emptying, that we make room for that immeasurable joy that only comes from knowing your God.
I know for certain and beyond any shadow of a doubt, that no car, no house, no piece of jewelry and no man on this earth could ever equate to happiness the way God intended. He is the only source. You were designed with this knowing. Each and everyone.
So, by all means. Enjoy the chocolate and the kisses. The movie and dinner. The flowers and the cards. Just know that tomorrow will come and you may wonder why you're so down. It's not anything you did or didn't do. It may just be that your overflowing...with desires and needs and wants. And maybe it's okay to possibly consider mama's old adage that....well. Less is more.
~ Your emptiness is but the preparation for your being filled; and your casting down is but the making ready for your lifting up ~ Charles H. Spurgeon
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