Out of the depths I cry to You, O LORD! O Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy! If You, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with You there is forgiveness, that You may be feared. I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in His Word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning. O Israel, hope in the LORD! For with the LORD there is steadfast love, and with Him is plentiful redemption. And He will redeem Israel from all his iniquities. (Psalm 130)
The following people have something in common: Cleopatra, Pontius Pilate, Ernest Hemingway, Adolph Hitler, Marilyn Monroe, Freddy Prinze, Kurt Cobain, Anthony Bourdain, and Naomi Judd. Can you guess what it is? If you said all are famous dead people you would be correct, but you would be omitting a key detail. All died by suicide! The number of celebrities who kill themselves is truly astounding.
Clearly, wealth and fame do not come with a promise of personal peace or happiness. Neither does good looks or talent. Yet many people pursue all these. Some people are attracted to celebrities like flies drawn to a sweaty horse. Whether it is Megan and Harry, the Kardashians, or one of the seemingly countless reality shows that fill the nation’s television screens. Speaker of the Lutheran Hour, the Rev. Dr. Martin Zeiglar, writes, “Some people who bemoan our celebrity culture long for the old days. But were the old days any different? Modern mass media has changed our expectations for knowing others and being known by them. But our core human problem is the same. We expect humans to give us what we need-whether we are delivering ourselves to a celebrity in a crate (as a Burt Reynolds fan purportedly did) or asking for a selfie with them, whether we’re looking to fans and friends for recognition or looking to ourselves for fulfillment, the problem is the same.”
In addition to celebrities, humans are naturally drawn to feel-good experiences; the wealthier one is, the more these experiences are available. How we love to spend money on a fun week at Disney World, or going on a cruise, or basking in the sun and surf on Waikiki Beach, or maybe you would prefer a week of skiing in the Austrian Alps. Maybe your feel-good definition is a big shopping spree with credit card in hand. Perhaps you follow music, television, movie, and sports celebrities in the media and seek vicarious pleasure from following their lives. Unfortunately, many people who take so-called dream vacations experience feelings of sadness or emptiness as soon the vacation ends when they are thrust back into the realities of their daily lives. Shopping sprees may satisfy for the moment, but bring trouble when the bills come due. And following the lives of famous celebrities is as likely to make one sad as happy.
At the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ (Luke 9:28-36), Jesus’ disciples Peter, John and James did not want to their experience on the mount to end. They had just seen Jesus’ countenance transfigured, his skin and clothing taking on a radiant glow as He spoke with Moses and Elijah. And they had heard the voice of God proclaim that Jesus is His beloved son. They wanted to extend their own mountaintop experience, saying to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah (verse 33).”
Unlike vacationers depressed and saddened at their end of vacation, the Apostles on the mount of transfiguration understood that God is the true source of happiness, not feel-good experiences, or certain human beings. In 2 Peter 1:16-18 we read, “For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.’ We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.”
To be certain, all people are born with a natural longing that only God can truly satisfy. Putting one’s faith and hope in anything besides God and His son Jesus Christ will ultimately end in disappointment; and it is a form of idolatry. Is your mind focused on the face of an idol? Is the idol yourself? Is it your work? Are you chasing feel-good moments that fade? When one becomes mired in idolatry it impairs their ability to see God, rendering them powerless in the midst of adversity, when their soul most longs for God. Turn to God and find true fulfillment for all your inner longing.
Isaiah 26:9 – “My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you. When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness.
Psalm 42:1-2 – “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?”
Psalm 73:24 – “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.”
Psalm 143:6 – “I spread out my hands to you; I thirst for you like a parched land.”
Divine Simplicity 
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