Our Hearts are Restless

“Thou hast formed us for Thyself and our hearts are restless till they find rest in Thee.”
-Saint Augustine of Hippo, Confessions

“Towers of gold
are still too little
These hands could hold
the world but it’ll
Never be enough
Never be enough for me”
-Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, Never Enough

I remember the first time I read the above quote from Augustine. The book nearly dropped from my hands. To this day, I am not sure I have read a truer statement about the human condition, about MY condition. Whether watching the news or looking in the mirror, the restlessness of the human soul is clear. And Augustine, in just a few words, perfectly diagnoses the situation.

For a brief moment, in the first few chapters of Genesis, we see humanity existing as God designed us to exist: in perfect harmony with God. We were made to be connected intimately with something infinitely bigger and better and more eternal than we are. And in that relationship, we were designed to know– and know deeply–our true value and significance and worth. Adam and Eve could rest secure in the Garden knowing who they were because they instinctively knew Whose we were.

Of course, in Genesis 3, we see the effect of sin and the loss of that deep connection with God. That connection–the source of all our value and significance and worth–because of sin, was severed. Like an umbilical cord, the source was gone but not the hunger. And we’ve been starving ever since.

I wrote this song as a prayer, a confession, and a reminder. Sure, there are moments when the feeling is especially acute. But, generally, I am tired of the restlessness. I am a grown man with a family that I love and a career that is fulfilling and hobbies that I enjoy. I have been blessed beyond measure, yet I still have this hunger within me for something more. I am still striving to know that I am significant and valued and found worthy. It is exhausting and pathetic. And, like Augustine, I believe it is the human condition, caused by sin’s severing.

We were made for God and our hearts are restless until they find their true and lasting rest in Him. I pray you find that rest. I pray I do too.

Credits

Words & Music: Bill Wolf
Lead Vocals: Chris Karki