July 23, 2019 Issue #160

Are you risking a meaningless life?

Maybe you haven't asked that question yet. Or maybe there are days, as a single person, when you wonder what the point of it all is. You may feel as if you're just going through the motions. Nothing you do seems to matter.

I think that feeling of emptiness is more common that most of us believe. In fact, I believe it's so widespread that it drives much of our economy.

Look at the promises of advertising:

• "Buy this and you'll finally be all right."
  
• "Owning this will solve that irritating problem in your life and you'll finally be in control."
  
• "Unappreciated? Treat yourself to this and you'll feel like a winner."

It's a lot more subtle than that, of course, but those are the underlying promises of commercials. The lie is that physical objects can solve spiritual problems. They can't. Like it or not, feeling meaningless is a spiritual problem.

If you're with me so far, go on to this month's feature article on how to avoid living a meaningless life.

For just a moment

I'd see a broken person

who tries to give their all,

 and sees life as overwhelming

and myself as very small.

I'd see the times I tried and failed

 and asked what might have been,

 if I hadn't hid inside myself,

too hurt to try again.

I'd see a kind and gentle heart

with love that overflows,

 that seeks the same love in return

 and a home in which it grows.


I'd see two eyes that look for hope

and blink to shed a tear.

And hands that help a fellow traveler

as we persevere.

God grant me just a moment

and give me power to see,

 the good things that I'm blind to,

and the love you have for me.

~ Jack Zavada, 2012 ~

When you wake up in the morning, do you feel like jumping out of bed to start a new adventure?

Hope for Hurting Singles can change that. This is not one of those sappy self-help books that's as nourishing as cotton candy. No, this guide to the single life digs deep into the aggravations that steal your joy and offers real, proven solutions.

Proven? Darn right! Author Jack Zavada took his 40 years of trial-and-error and converted those lessons into an action plan for true, lasting change.

Hope for Hurting Singles shows you how to fix your faulty thinking and replace it with clear-eyed truth. This stuff isn't for wimps! It's for singles who are serious about breaking free from negative patterns and reaching for a bigger, happier life.

Is that you? You can find out by reading the entire first chapter, free, RIGHT HERE.

Hope for Hurting Singles is only $10.99 at amazon.com. Put on your grown-up pants and order your copy today!

More Wigglesworth wisdom in our QOTM

What brings meaning to life? Helping one another. If you're like me, you need a lot of help. We don't need help just when we're in trouble, though. Help can be something as simple as having lunch or a cup of coffee with someone. To appreciate someone is to help them.

We single folks can get wrapped up in our own little worlds, forgetting there are other people on the planet beside ourselves. We serve God when we serve other people. There are countless ways to serve, but we should always be motivated by kindness and glorifying God.

Meaning is not about fame and it's never been about money. It's about loving God and loving your neighbor. You can do both when you help someone.

If you do this, you need to stop right now

I used to beat myself up. I don't mean physically, of course, but emotionally. I was always running myself down, comparing myself to others and thinking I could never measure up.

If you're doing this, you need to stop right now. I mean it.

This behavior is fairly common, from what I read, but that doesn't make it excusable. Throughout my life, I encountered many other people who were down, and I always tried to encourage them. I told them they were being too hard on themselves. Ironically, while I was building them up, I continued to tear myself down.

We do it for a lot of reasons. Much of it is the unrealistic standards society pushes at us. We're told we have to look a certain way, make a certain amount of money, live in a certain kind of home, and do certain things to be acceptable.

Acceptable to whom? The people who set these phony standards and always have ulterior motives? Let's not underestimate the influence these voices have on us. We're expected to fit in, but at the same time be unique. How can you do that?

There's an old saying: People spend money they don't have to buy things they don't need to impress people they don't know.

It's painfully true. The lower our sense of self-esteem, the more desperately we want to fit in.

It's like we never got out of high school.

I finally escaped this self-hate habit through the love of God, and single friend, I believe that's the only way you can do it. That's why you see old unbelievers who still can't stand themselves. They don't have God to set them straight.

God's love makes you right. It overwhelms your sense of inadequacy and drowns out the critics. It embraces you in a relationship so comforting that your insecurity is swept away. The Creator of Everything loves you, just the way you are.

Today, when I'm tempted to run myself down, I remember God's love for me and ask, "Hey, Jack, who you gonna believe? Yourself, who doesn't know anything, or God, who never makes a mistake?"

Now that's what I'm talkin' about!

A single guy who got discouraged…

He wasn't depressed because he was single but because so much went wrong he thought life was meaningless. Have you ever held your head like he's doing in this 1834 painting by Moritz Berendt? I have.

Unfortunately, God doesn't send an angel to buck us up, as he did with Elijah, but we actually have something better: the Holy Spirit. He lives inside every baptized believer. Here are a few lessons you can learn from Elijah when you get discouraged.

On another subject, you might be interested in a few statistics from www.inspiration-for-singles.com for June. A total of 7,815 visitors came to the site from 131 different countries. The United States accounted for the most visitors, at 69%, while Germany came in second at 5%, Great Britain third at 4%, and China fourth, at 3%. We consistently get visitors from primarily Muslim countries and thank God for that.

Here in Illinois, USA, where I live, it's a scorching 94 degrees F outside today. My dog Louie and I will be grateful to see cool weather again. But we get outdoors and enjoy God's beautiful creation every day, no matter what the weather. I hope you do too!

If you'd like to email me a comment on this newsletter or anything on the site, just use our secure contact form.

It will go directly into my personal inbox, and I'll write you back within 3 days.

I hope you enjoyed this newsletter. Until August, enjoy your summer, fellow singleton, and enjoy the God who loves you!

Jack Zavada