Most people have an escape hatch that they use to flee from pressure or to find pleasure when
the burdens of life get too heavy. Hatches are holes torn into our souls that lead to excessive behaviors, which when done over time contribute to negative outcomes in this life and the next.
Escapes are labeled with various signs that promise enjoyment or excitement, a bag of cookies, a bottle of booze, a few puffs of a drug that often end in regret and bondage. Many justify their excessive behaviors by saying they deserve the vice as a break from the stresses of life. Others are seeking to fill the hole in their soul and oftentimes don’t even know it. The Bible speaks of people caring more about adorning their homes and seeking pleasure, rather than caring about the things of God. He then compares these behaviors to putting money into a bag with holes that result in a meaningless life (Haggai 1:4-6).
The Holy Spirit is the Helper who can restore the torn and seal the soul holes to make a person complete in Him. The Bible never tells us to worry or to carry our own burdens. On the contrary we are commanded, “Do not be anxious about anything” (Philippians 4:6), and to “Cast (literally throw or hurl) your anxiety on Him because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7). Jesus also calls those who are weighed down with burdens to come to him for rest (Matthew 11:28-30). This doesn't mean we're to sit idly-by doing nothing when work needs to be done, but oftentimes we are the ones who make life more difficult because of our preconceived expectations of what it should look like and then grow our possessions accordingly. The paradox to this is that when we take things in and consume, we often feel empty and unhappy, but when we produce and give things out to help other people, it is then that we become joyful and fulfilled.
Be sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise to be filled with power and to live a life fulfilled (Ephesians 1:13).
Escapes are labeled with various signs that promise enjoyment or excitement, a bag of cookies, a bottle of booze, a few puffs of a drug that often end in regret and bondage. Many justify their excessive behaviors by saying they deserve the vice as a break from the stresses of life. Others are seeking to fill the hole in their soul and oftentimes don’t even know it. The Bible speaks of people caring more about adorning their homes and seeking pleasure, rather than caring about the things of God. He then compares these behaviors to putting money into a bag with holes that result in a meaningless life (Haggai 1:4-6).
The Holy Spirit is the Helper who can restore the torn and seal the soul holes to make a person complete in Him. The Bible never tells us to worry or to carry our own burdens. On the contrary we are commanded, “Do not be anxious about anything” (Philippians 4:6), and to “Cast (literally throw or hurl) your anxiety on Him because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7). Jesus also calls those who are weighed down with burdens to come to him for rest (Matthew 11:28-30). This doesn't mean we're to sit idly-by doing nothing when work needs to be done, but oftentimes we are the ones who make life more difficult because of our preconceived expectations of what it should look like and then grow our possessions accordingly. The paradox to this is that when we take things in and consume, we often feel empty and unhappy, but when we produce and give things out to help other people, it is then that we become joyful and fulfilled.
Be sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise to be filled with power and to live a life fulfilled (Ephesians 1:13).
