The Walk Begins

Photo Credit - www.edmontonjournal.com

Eleven long years ago, my favorite hockey team went to the Stanley Cup Finals, hockey's most prestigious award. Some even say it is the toughest trophy to win in sports. I attended as many of the playoff games as I could. It was a thrilling ride, they were the underdogs the entire way. They barely squeaked into the playoffs in 16th place. As they won round after round excitement was built. They were the biggest surprise in the league. Players would sacrifice everything, in hopes of their life long dream coming true. During one game I remember a player getting two of his teeth knocked out by a puck, he left the game only to return later in the game to fight for a win. It was a run worth cheering for. The headline everyone wants to hear,  "Underdog fights their way to the Stanley Cup Finals!" They fought hard, it came down to game seven, do or die. The Carolina Hurricanes vs. the Edmonton Oilers. What a story. There they were, ready to make history, Edmonton was fighting for their 6th Stanley cup. My heart raced, I was on the edge of my seat the entire game. But that day in June 2006,  would not be a day of victory. The oilers lost, 3-1. Heartbreak. 

Although experiencing the joy of my favorite team racing through the playoffs was sweet like honey, the loss was bitter. Afterwards, the joy was quickly gone. 

I feel this reflects a lot on our lives. We go to school as kids, and as teenagers many of us dream of living "the great life". When we get there, the job, the family, the house, the kids, and the cars, whatever your dream might be, the things that we thought would give us success, the things that we thought would fulfill us and make us happy seldom do. Yes, they are glimpses of happiness. But really what are we here for? How can we be filled with unending joy? 

"The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I’m tearing up and throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him." Phillipians 3:7-8 The Message

Maybe you have heard these songs before. 

"You can't always get what you want." - Rolling Stones.

"I still haven't found what I'm looking for." - U2

There are many songs out there with this common theme running through them. A theme of searching without finding the answer. Why is it we look to love, sex, and others relationships for the answer to complete fulfillment? It's because we are looking for one thing: love. All too often, the kind of love that we find does not leave us satisfied. 

Just recently Adele sang a song titled, "Hello"
The song became an obsession for many. Why? Because in the longing of our hearts we are in desperate need of love, but a better, complete love. 

In the Biblical book of John chapter 4 there is a story of a woman who so desperately needed to find love. She looked everywhere, she had looked for love in all the world could offer. From men and other things. But only when she got to know Jesus did she find what she had been longing for. 

This week let us start searching together and find our epic walk. 

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