What are you searching for?

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Do you remember going to large family parties when it was Easter Sunday, and you were around the age of 7?  It looked like springing off of porch steps to tackle your cousins, elbowing your siblings to get to that one bush you knew at least three eggs were hiding in, running as though your life depended on it to beat everyone to the egg you saw peeking out of the small dent in the ground that was slightly covered by dirt. 

The search invites every competitive bone in our body to do whatever it takes to get the prize.  Our hearts playing along, our minds determined.  Let’s pretend we’re 7 years old again…

Dashing across the yard, searching high and low for a hint of color.  Peeking around the corners, lifting every object that lay resting on the ground in hopes of finding what you’re searching for underneath.  A glimmer of color peeks through the bushes long enough to catch your eyes.

You race to beat anyone who may have seen the same glimmer of color etching its way into plain sight.  As you look down, you see skimmed knees, bruised elbows, and dark streaks of dirt making its mark up and down the side of your leg. 

None of it mattered, of course.  It’s Easter Sunday, and you’re on a search.  The search to be rewarded with gathering the most eggs, having the most candy and taking home the title of largest egg collector… I’m glad that title didn’t remain my main goal in life.  Now, I just want the chocolate.

Fast forward a few (or a lot of) years to the present time, and you’re not 7 anymore.  You’re an adult, but you still find yourself on the hunt.  We’re no longer searching for plastic or boiled eggs; we’re searching, now more than ever, for other things. 

The things we search for include: answers to the question of why our world is in turmoil, a tangible relief from the anxiety that’s wrecked every sense of security and protection we had, someone to fill the void of loneliness we now realize is in our life (thanks social distancing), something of familiarity to grasp in a time of unfamiliar territory and an unknown future… hope.

Hope is the biggest thing I think we are searching for.  It’s the underlying reason we search for the other things I listed.  We want something or someone to fulfill us.  We crave relief and answers.  We crave instant gratification and satisfaction.  We crave hope.

It makes me think back to the book of Jeremiah.  Jeremiah was appointed as a prophet by God, which basically means he was sent to tell the people of Israel the hard truth about the consequences they will endure as a result of their disobedience.

The first chapter is mostly a one-sided dialogue between Jeremiah and God, with God doing most of the talking.  He tells Jeremiah things like “Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you,” “Do not be dismayed by them,” “for I am with you,” and other phrases of similar comfort. 

We never read Jeremiah’s cries or debates about the task he was purposed to carry out, but I can only imagine that those cries were present.  The task of giving tough messages about the hard things coming to people he knew was no easy burden to carry.  I’m sure he was ignored and laughed at.  How frustrating it must have been for him to know the truth but have no one listen or accept it.  I imagine in fulfilling his purpose, Jeremiah was lonely, scared and even heartbroken.

As we read the lines spoken by God saying, “Do not be afraid,” we see God using His all-knowing power here.  Though we do not read Jeremiah stating his feelings, God knew them.  He knew Jeremiah was wrestling with his mission.  He knew seeing the purpose in it had to be hard to grasp.  He knew the difficulty of the task Jeremiah was assigned.  God knew Jeremiah’s cries even if Jeremiah never voiced them because He’s God. 

Just as God knew Jeremiah’s unvoiced cries, He knows ours too.  He hears us even when we hear silence and we’re searching for answers.

Jumping from chapter one to chapter 29 we read the well-known verse that is painted on the front of every journal (guilty), displayed on the walls of many houses, and written on index cards to be taped to our mirrors. 

“’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” Jeremiah 29:11

This is a verse that was spoken to a people who were drowning in messages about their future consequences.  In the midst of messages that only told warnings of destruction, this message from God brought clarity and comfort.  It brought hope.

What’s interesting about this verse is where it is placed in the book of Jeremiah. It’s not at the beginning where it’s easy to flip to and everything is good and the people are instantly restored.  We have to wait 29 chapters to read this verse of hope.  29 chapters of warnings of the punishment coming, hardship and searching.

So why did the people get stuck in this destruction in the first place?  Why did they wander so far into disobedience to cause this punishment?  They were searching.  They were searching for the same things you and I find ourselves searching for too- answers, acceptance, relief, love, satisfaction, the list goes on.

We’re all like the people in the book of Jeremiah sometimes.  We’re all like 7-year-olds on an Easter egg hunt.  We’re searching high and low for a tangible plastic egg to grasp.  We want to see it peeking its way through the bushes because we want the temporary satisfaction of taking home the winning title… or the candy.

 It makes us feel good in the moment so we keep filling ourselves with things that partially fill us instead of eternally sustain us.

The search is over.  It was over the moment Jesus made His way to the cross for all of us.  Why did He do this?  He was sent to die a slow, painful death.  It’s the act of sacrifice and love we find hard to comprehend because we can’t fathom that no matter how many times we mess up, He died to forgive us because He loves us.  He died so that you and I could live in a surrendered and redeemed relationship with Him. 

The search was over the moment He hung his head down and said, “It is finished.” 

No longer do we have to search for love because He IS love.  He showed His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8).  None of us have done anything to deserve this love because we all fall short and mess up.  BUT because of His mercy and compassion on us, He died to give us life.  (Romans 3:23)

No longer do we have to search for answers when we’re wondering “does death win?” Because it doesn’t.  He ran out of the grave!  He died on a cross and rose three days later- the day we celebrate as Easter.  Because of the sacrifice He made through death, we can have a personal relationship with Him.  To do this, we must confess with our mouth that He is Lord and believe He died and rose again. (Romans 10:9)

No longer do we have to search for relief because He gives relief.  He carries our burdens just as he carried our cross the day He died.

After His death on the cross, He declared victory over death.  He invites us to accept Him as the One true answer and Savior of our life.  He is the only way to eternal life.

As Easter approaches this weekend, and you’re thinking about the Easter egg hunt your family traditionally does, know that we no longer need to be searching.

The search is over.  It is finished.

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