[This reflection by Helen Ruffhead was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 16/Jun/2024]
When I started my journey to adoption, over 30 years ago, the magazine for prospective adopters was full of profiles of children needing new homes. Since most adopters want babies or very young children, most of the children still waiting for homes were older, or had disabilities. I particularly remember the description of one 12-year-old girl, who it said: “wore her carers out with continual demands for new possessions.” It also said: “X has been described as having a huge hole inside her which she desperately tries to fill, but nothing satisfies.” Clearly this girl was crying out for the love which she had never experienced, but was trying to fill the void with possessions.
Even those of us who have had loving parents have a gap inside that only God can fill, yet we so often try to fill it with things that will never satisfy and can become addictive. In a recent sermon on gluttony, Dazz talked about the way we try to fill this gap with things like food, coffee, our phones, social media or whatever else distracts us from the pain or emptiness we may feel. I know that when I am hurting inside I tend to turn first to my inequality sudoku or crosswords or sugary snacks to block out the pain. The problem is that these are only temporary fixes and can stop us relating to other people, as well as creating a barrier between us and God.
Jeremiah 2 v 13 says: “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”
Jesus said: “Let anyone who is thirsty, come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” John 7 v 37, 38.
So, how can we fill this void? We can ask God to fill us with his Holy Spirit (the living water described by Jesus). We also need to spend time with him each day, reading the Bible, praying and asking God to show us his plans for our lives.
As it says in the hymn ‘For me to live is Christ’:
There is no peace, no joy, no thrill, like walking in his will
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Last week’s reflection: What Comes After Pentecost? by Michael Goble
Contributed by Helen Ruffhead; © Helen Ruffhead