Whom have I in heaven but you?
    And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
    but God is the strength of my heart
    and my portion forever.

Psalm 73: 25-26

What is the best news you could hear today? And what is the worst news? The answer to those questions will reveal where your heart is right now. When our greatest desire and reward is Christ himself, there is literally nothing that can shake us, not even death. Christ overcame death. In that, he also overcame all the consequences of the reality of death – hopelessness, fear, fatalism. When “bad things” happen to us, God is purifying our love and faith so that we might desire and trust only Him. It’s not because he is obsessive for our attention but because he desires that we share in His unshakeable victory. When we pursue anything in this world other than Christ, we settle for a mediocre life and false security. Our life in this world is but a vapour, a flower here and gone tomorrow. Not only is the pleasure futile, it is also not of the best quality. It may be good, but it’s not the best. The deepest and eternal pleasure is found in no one else but God.

May our highest pursuit be God. More than the job, more than the spouse, more than the successful ministry, more than lovely kids. May these never become idols to us. If God should deprive us of any of them, it is only ever because he desires to give him the best thing and forever – himself.

“O God, I have tasted Thy goodness, and it has both satisfied me and made me thirsty for more. I am painfully conscious of my need of further grace. I am ashamed of my lack of desire. O God, the Triune God, I want to want Thee; I long to be filled with longing; I thirst to be made more thirsty still. Show me Thy glory, I pray Thee, that so I may know Thee indeed. Begin in mercy a new work of love within me. Say to my soul, “Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.” Then give me grace to rise and follow Thee up from this misty lowland where I have wandered so long. In Jesus’ name, Amen. ”

• A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God