Elisabeth Elliot: There's something very deep within us that stirs at the idea of renewal. Why is that? Probably because we're dissatisfied with our own existence. We like something new, something different, something exciting.

Lisa Barry: I'm not sure why Americans seem to be so dissatisfied. Maybe it's because advertisers encourage it; otherwise, we wouldn't feel the need to buy what they were selling. Or possibly it's our own fallen nature that's forever looking for an easier way of doing things. All this week on Gateway To Joy, Elisabeth Elliot will be talking about restlessness and what should be done about it. She begins by encouraging us all to look deep inside to find our heart's desire. Let's hear what she has to say.

Elisabeth Elliot: "You are loved with an everlasting love." That's what the Bible says, "and underneath are the everlasting arms." This is your friend, Elisabeth Elliot, talking with you this week about the subject of restlessness.

Recently, Lars and I saw a full-page ad showing the front end of a coal-black Lexus with the lights on. Most of my listeners, I suppose, know that a Lexus is a very luxurious car. And there was a dialog on the page between the id and the superego, terms that the general public is expected to understand.

Well, I have to confess I wasn't real sure that I knew the difference between the id and the superego, so I opened my unabridged dictionary and find that they are psychoanalytical terms referring to the fundamental mass of life tendencies out of which the ego develops. Well, having read that, I'm not sure I know anything more than I did before. But at least we do know that the ego is the self and the superego is the moral conscience.

In this advertisement, the id is saying, "I want it. I want it. I want it. I want it. I want it." And the superego's reply is, "After careful consideration, I concur." So the buyer, I suppose, is arguing with himself, "Do I need it? Does it make any difference whether I need it? I want it. I want it." And therefore the superego says, "After careful consideration, I concur," an expression of the lust for pleasure, for satisfaction, for fulfillment.

But in today's world, that always has to mean something else, doesn't it? I need something more, something else, something better, something fancier, something flashier, something that will make a statement about my position in the world or about who I am.

Sometimes I ask the question of young people, "What do you want more than anything else in the world?" Seldom do I get a very ready reply. I would ask you that question today, "What do you want more than anything else?"

Let me read to you from 1 John. This is a passage that I often thought about when we five widows in Ecuador were asked to explain why our husbands went into dangerous territory when they knew that they were risking their lives. Listen to this passage from the first letter of John:

"Never give your hearts to this world or to any of the things in it. A man cannot love the Father and love the world at the same time. For the whole world system, based as it is on man's primitive desires--their greedy ambitions and the glamour of all that they think splendid--is not derived from the Father at all but from the world itself. The world and all its passionate desires will one day disappear. But the man who is following God's will is part of the permanent and cannot die."

Whenever you hear words like renewal, revival, renovation, remodeling, reprogramming, reimagining, does your heart sort of give a little leap? There's something buried deep within us that stirs at the idea of renewal. Why is that? Probably because we're dissatisfied with our own existence. We like something new, something different, or something exciting. And perhaps deep down inside of us there's a little voice that's saying, "Why doesn't God let me have it? God has let me down."

I have a letter here from a young man that illustrates some of these things. He says, "I have read seven of your books, several of them twice, and the Savior has become more precious than ever before. I became very wicked because I was very bitter. I felt like God had let me down. I'm 29 years old, wife, two children, taking 10 years to get a BA in biblical studies, two years more to get an MA in ministry, feeling that the Lord had called me to preach 11 years ago. But He wouldn't give me a church to pastor.

"Doctor bills, sickness, poverty, bankruptcy, two sick, old cars, etc. The only place He would let me preach was in a rescue mission for 10 years. We've had over 500 professions of faith during this time--but I was bitter because He wouldn't give me the opportunity to preach in a church or even teach Sunday school.

"Then I met Elisabeth Elliot in Passion and Purity. You've made the Lord Jesus Christ big and faithful and loving to me again. You made me realize that He was that all along, especially when I was hurting. I'm learning obedience through suffering and I'm learning to love every minute of it, because the Father is fixing me like His perfect Son. I cannot put in words how grateful I am. Of all the hundreds of books in my library, yours are the dearest of the dear. I'm learning and feeling contentment for the first time in my life. My God is big again. There are tears even now. They are tears of unspeakable joy."

I was really amazed to get a letter like that, first place from a man who had read my book Passion and Purity, which a lot of people think is just for women because it is the love story of Jim Elliot and me. And people sometimes assume that anything to do with sexual purity is a matter only for women to be concerned about.

But the other thing that amazed me is that somehow the Spirit of the Lord had spoken to him through that book in ways that I would never have imagined. I don't remember trying to say in any way how big God was or anything about the subject of restlessness and discontent and bitterness. It just proves to me that God can take our feeblest efforts and make something beautiful, speak through anything, any way, any person that He wants to.

And that encourages me. I hope it encourages you to realize that you never know when God is going to be using you. You never know--as you're being faithful and obedient, perhaps in some very small and hidden way--that it may have effects that will be long-lasting for somebody else.

Why the overpowering obsession nowadays with dinosaurs; space creatures; the occult; the fantastic; man's attempts to escape to a different time, world or atmosphere? Why is everyone so obsessed with things like this? Why do we love fantasy and fable? Well, I think it's born of the desire to be somewhere else, somebody else, out of this world, out of this era of time.

Why are play-acting, masquerading, theater, and mime so tremendously popular? Well, because it gives people an opportunity to be somebody else, to disguise who they really are, to attempt to steal a role which is not our own. And then, of course, there are other methods of being somewhere else or somebody else--more common and available.

A different car. It may give me a different self-image, a different image in the eyes of my neighbors. A different house, a different dress, a different occupation, a different doctor. I know one woman that goes from doctor to doctor to doctor. And, of course, none of them have ever done her any good as far as she can tell. She's sure that next week she'll find one that will. A different church. Do you know any church hoppers? And then, sadly, so many are looking for a different wife or a different husband. A different exercise machine, and all the gear and outfits for biking. You can't just buy a bicycle nowadays; you have to buy a bicycle and a helmet and special gloves and shiny, tight pants and who knows what else.

And garage sales, they speak to me of restlessness. Look at all that junk that people bought, piece after piece after piece, thinking that they were going to find peace in their lives and it doesn't work and they get tired of it and it goes into a garage sale. Somebody else comes along thinking, There's just the thing I need. He buys it and it isn't long before it goes into his garage sale.

The excitement of adventure, insistence on change, constant amusement, wind surfing, hang gliding, bungee jumping, war, crime, violence, OJ Halloween costumes. I couldn't believe it last fall when I heard that there were actually children's costumes representing OJ--another form of recasting one's self in the mold of a personality.

I'd like for us to think this week. What is it that brings real happiness? The last thing that you bought, thinking that it was really going to make a difference in your life, did it? Did it bring satisfaction? God tells us that we are to leave the old self behind. We'll think more about these things tomorrow.

Lisa Barry: If you'd like to get yourself on the road to contentment, then here's a good first step. I'd encourage you to get a copy of the book Mountain Breezes. It's a collection of poetry by Amy Carmichael. If you're familiar at all with her work, then you know that the words she uses pack a lot of punch. Elisabeth Elliot has put this collection of poetry together because she knew it would be difficult for you and I to assemble the poetry ourselves. Amy Carmichael had a profound effect on Elisabeth and she can have the same effect on you. If you are interested in the book, Mountain Breezes, we'd be happy to send that to you for a suggested donation of $16. Here's our address:

Gateway To Joy, Box 82500, Lincoln, NE 68501. That's Gateway To Joy, Box 82500, Lincoln, NE 68501. Or, call toll-free 24 hours a day 1-800-759-4JOY. That's 1-800-759-4569. You can also find us on the Internet at gatewaytojoy.org. Gateway To Joy is a listener-supported production of Back to the Bible.

Have you ever wondered if you have any worldly tendencies? Find out what the characteristics are, the next time we meet for Gateway To Joy.