Restless and monotonous, until...

Augustine of Hippo said, “Because you have made us for Yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in Thee.” — Augustine, Confessions (1.1.1.)

The first half of Augustine’s statement is fact. The divines that wrote the Westminster Shorter Catechism got it:

    Question. 1. What is the chief end of man?
    Answer. 1. Man's chief end is to glorify God…

Those fellows had read their Bible: “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.” (Colossians 1:16 ESV, emphasis mine) We were made for God by God, and we are meant to exist and live for God’s glory.

However, I didn’t finish the answer to Question 1 of the Westminster Shorter Catechism:

    Question. 1. What is the chief end of man?
    Answer. 1. Man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy him for ever.

You see, brothers and sisters, whether Augustine or the Westminster divines, they got it… the objective reality is that God made us for Himself, and the subjective reality is that we won’t finding lasting joy in anything until He is our lasting joy.

We are like the homing pigeons, zooming at 60 mph across hundreds of miles to a point that is just for us. We are like the rainbow trout, pursuing a scent secret to us, pursuing against the prevailing current, pursuing through obstacles, the muck of pollution’s corruption, finding that place we were designed to be most what we were created to be. We are like the fragile monarch butterfly, drifting with relentless purpose, across thousands of miles and countless perils to arrive at our seasonal homes.

Indeed, we are made for God, and our hearts are restless until we are at rest in Him.

There is a violent poetry to both monotony and futility. It seems violent because it is often soul-searing and emotion-wrecking, but poetic because it is the beautiful, rhythmic search for rest and purpose.

All the frustration is meant to drive us to God. All the pursuit is meant to land us at His feet...before His throne… worshiping Him… finding that satisfaction / rest / peace / purpose we can only find in Him.