Longing

Longing

He satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.

PERUSING THE MENU, I glanced up to look down the length of the noisy, laughing group of college students. Seated at one end of our table, smiling indulgently, was a couple roughly the age of my parents. An hour earlier, they’d shown up on our doorstep to visit their son, a friend of mine. They had made the stopover in Oxford while on a trip to London and offered to take our group of friends out for dinner. Eating out was infrequent and special, so we gladly agreed.

As we sat visiting and discussing our studies with our friend’s parents at a delicious Lebanese restaurant, I felt a sudden pang of homesickness. Their demeanor was casual and comfortable, and I couldn’t help but wish it was my own family visiting. Though I loved my friends and my studies, I longed for the comfort of home.

But as the night wore on, I felt cheered by the couple’s presence. Though it wasn’t my parents at the end of the table, and the other people my age were friends rather than siblings, it felt like a family dinner. The couple probably didn’t give the evening a second thought. But to someone who had never lived farther than forty-five minutes from home and felt untethered, a little lost, and a little lonely, their generosity felt meaningful. Though an ocean separated me from my own family, my longing for home was satisfied. And as the night ended, I went back to my quiet dorm feeling nothing but gratitude.

Years later, I still remember the longing and loneliness of my far-from-home heart. We know that God puts the lonely in families, and he satisfies those longings for home that we feel. Yet we can partner with him in doing so—in our generous invitations, in our heartfelt conversations, and in the way we simply notice those who are overlooked or ignored or feeling out of place. Let’s resolve to be that safe place, that shelter for someone else. Let’s give someone else the warmth and comfort of home, even when they’re far from those they love, either by chance or circumstance. When we do, our actions point others back to a loving God who can satisfy every longing.

Lord, thank you that you satisfy the longings of our hearts. Amen.

-Kristin

One Good Step: Invite someone who may be longing for connection to share dinner with you.