By Brenda Cannon Henley
Little is more frustrating that sitting for several hours and attempting to put together a beautiful scene, an animal print, or even an intriguing downtown skyline puzzle only to discover as the end approaches that pieces are missing. Perhaps someone in the past did not gather each piece and put back in the box when they had completed the puzzle or by chance the box dropped or was knocked over and a piece or two fell out and was not found. At any rate, the joy of the completion of the task loses its excitement and becomes a lesson in futility.

This appears to me a good explanation of trying to live a life without God or biblical principles. Realizing that this column run weekly in The Examiner attracts people of many faiths, I attempt to keep the articles non-partisan and certainly do not suggest that each reader be of one faith. I heard a really good sermon this past Sunday asking each of us to examine and search our lives to see that we are a part of a bigger picture or a big puzzle if you will for my illustration’s sake.

The pastor said that every human being has a “God-shaped hole” in his or her life. He describes it as a “void in his soul, spirit, or life that can only be filled by God.” He added that the God-shaped hole is the innate longing of the human heart for something outside itself, something transcendent, something other, something more. I found that Ecclesiastes 3:11 refers to God’s placing of eternity in man’s heart. God made humanity for His eternal purpose and only God can fulfill our desire for eternity. All religion is based on the innate desire to “connect” with God or something greater than one’s self.

Mankind attempts to fill this hole in the life with things other than God. Jeremiah, the prophet said in Chapter 17, Verse 9, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” King Solomon says a similar thing in Ecclesiastes 9:3. “The hearts of men, moreover, are full of evil and there is madness in their hearts while they live. Romans 8:7 and Romans 1:18-22 describes humanity ignoring what can be known about God, including the God-shaped hole, and instead, attempting to gain happiness by worshipping anything and everything other than God. “The sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.”

We all know loved ones and coworkers who spend too many hours of their lives looking for something other than God to fill their longing for meaning, for substance, for truth, and for evasive happiness. Some choose business and the desire for money and wealth. Others choose power and prestige. Still others choose sports or travel. Solomon referred to many of our choices as sheer vanity. He had it all. He had riches, success, esteem, and power, and yet, he said “All is vanity. Here is the conclusion of the matter, “Fear God, and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

I agree with many writers that have said that just as a square peg cannot fill a round hole, neither can the “God-shaped hole” inside each of us be filled by anyone or anything other than God. As for me, I further believe that only through a personal relationship by faith in Jesus Christ can the “God-shaped hole” be filled and the desire to please God be nurtured for eternity.

What are you personally searching for today as you read this column? What do you need to do to bring happiness and fulfillment into your life? Do you sense that you have a “God-shaped hole” in your soul that needs filling today? He stands ready to meet you when you call on Him.

It is akin to the missing puzzle piece that needs to be found in order to complete the scene.

Brenda Cannon Henley can be reached at (409) 781-8788 or at [email protected].

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