Shortcut to Hell

And he said, “Divine for me by a spirit and bring up for me whomever I shall name to you.” 1 Samuel 28:8

I’m all about feeling good. It’s not that I feel bad. My mood is great, and I feel fine. I just always want to feel even better. Desiring happiness or joy isn’t wrong. We all want the good life. Where I go wrong is in how I try to get there. For instance, I may know that losing 15 pounds would make me feel good about myself. That, however, is a lot of work and would take a long time. A donut though, would take very little work and would make me feel good right now. The problem, of course, is that my donut shortcut is counterproductive to weight loss. The easy route always comes with consequences later.

Shortcuts are a profound life problem for me. I believe that I was created to experience authentic life, joy, and peace only in an intimate relationship with God. I find true joy only when I daily seek and follow his will. Honestly though, that’s a lot of work and there are countless distractions which promise a shortcut to the good life. Daily, I’m confronted with a myriad of temptations, all of which promise to make me feel great right now. I’ve learned from experience though, that my shortcuts all come with consequences.

King Saul illustrated this shortcut problem in today’s passage. In the story, as the Philistines prepared to attack Israel, Saul quaked in fear. He went to God, but God wasn’t listening. What Saul should have done at this point, was to repent of his disobedience. He should have begged God’s forgiveness, offered a sacrifice, and done whatever it took to seek and follow God’s will. That, however, was a lot of work. So instead, he took a shortcut. Desperate for guidance, Saul turned to a witch, seeking answers in the occult. He got his answers, but it was little comfort as the necromancer predicted Saul’s approaching death, which was the direct consequence of a life of taking shortcuts. Like me, Saul wanted the good life. That wasn’t wrong. Where he went wrong was in how he tried to get there.

We all want to be happy. We all though, are tempted to seek that happiness in self-destructive pursuits. God created us to know authentic life only in a loving relationship with him. When we try to find it anywhere else – in food, shopping, wealth, or drugs – we attempt a shortcut, which, in the end, turns us from God and makes us miserable. If we truly want to be happy, we must daily seek and follow God’s will. To this, there are no shortcuts, but in the end, it’s a far less miserable path.