If you’ve ever been to the doctor’s office or hospital in 2020-21, you’ve probably been stopped at the front door and asked the questions: “Have you had a fever? Do you have a cough? Have you experienced body aches, sore throat, shortness of breath?” And if you answered “yes” to any of those questions, you would be sent away because these are symptoms of the COVID-19 virus. 

We are all familiar with symptoms and how they are initial indicators of something negative, like an illness. But there are also symptoms of more positive things, as well. If you are physically healthy, you’ll have “symptoms” like having energy and feeling chipper. If you are doing emotionally well, you’ll have symptoms like having a positive outlook and smiling more often. Last week, we started a new series called “Something More” (if you missed the first blog in this series, click here) where I shared my recent journey into a season of fruitfulness and joy. Something More is a description of discovering and living into the life God intends for us through Christ. This week I want to look at the symptoms of the Something More “virus.” Here are a few:

– You have a deep desire or longing of the heart but don’t know how to fulfill it. 

– You have a deep dissatisfaction or discontentment in life.

– You feel like you should be making a greater contribution that would bring good to the world.

– You look at your current station in life and feel that it’s a “dead-end.”

– You feel like you’re just “settling” for something less.

– You’re facing a transition (job, family, loss, moving, graduation, illness, retirement) and you’re feeling anxious about the next season in life.

– It feels like you’re just running around in circles and not getting anywhere.

Basically, the symptoms of the Something More Virus can be summed up with the statement: “There’s got to be something more to life than what I am experiencing!”

Can you relate?

If so, it means you are “human” because we ALL experience this at one time or another.

I have a biblical explanation (or theory) on what’s behind the symptoms of the Something More virus.

When God created the universe, He specifically created human beings special. It says in Gen. 1:27 that He created us in “His image.” In a sense, God created us to be and to do “something more.” This includes our identity (who we are), our abilities (what we’ve been given), as well as our mission (what we do). And we see this Divine Mission specifically defined in the Gen. 1:28 as the humans were given the charge to use their something more capabilities to help the created order reach its fullest potential. However, two chapters later we read about the Fall of humanity. Basically, Adam and Eve pursued their own agenda in wanting to be their own gods. The image of God in them (and, subsequently, in us) became marred, our identity became disfigured, our special abilities became diverted, and the Divine Mission was discarded. As a result, we became something much less than what God created us to be or to do.

But the remnant or memory of the Something More that God intended for us still exists in our soul. It is buried deep, under layers of our fallenness (our sin, our egotistical coping mechanisms, our obliviousness to true reality), but it is still there, crying out. The Something More symptoms are the faint cries and longings of our souls to be free, to be real, to be alive and to be fruitful – as we were designed to be.

Thanks be to God for the sending of His Son, Jesus Christ. As our guest bloggers so wonderfully articulated in our previous series (if you missed them, click here), the work of Jesus Christ set us free from the bondage of sin, falseness, and darkness so that we can be restored to be and do the Something More we were created for. In John 10:10, Jesus said, “I came that they may have life to the full.” That fullness or abundance of life is an apt description of what I call the “Something More Life.” 

So, as people who have been redeemed by Jesus Christ’s life, death and resurrection, we are invited by the Holy Spirit to embark on the journey into the Something More Life. This journey results in: 

1. Living into our unique God-given calling

2. Contributing to the goodness God wants to bring in our world

3. Experiencing a greater connection and communion with God

4. On-going transformation to become Christ-like

5. Experiencing a peace in knowing that I’m being and doing what I’m designed to be and do

6. Knowing at the end of my earthly life that I’m leaving this world a better place than it was when I came into it

When we feel the symptoms of the Something More virus, the only way we can “treat” it is by stepping out in FAITH.We step, by faith, into the Something More Life by following the lead of the Holy Spirit.

I’ve experienced this many times in my life. But one that comes to mind took place many years ago when I was a very successful high school band and choir director. I started attending this new church in our neighborhood. I remember watching Byron, the worship pastor, lead our time of congregational singing. He was dynamically leading us into God’s presence. And, out of the blue, this thought came to my mind, “I really, really want to do what Byron is doing!”

That was the Something More virus! So, I took a step of faith and joined the worship team. Then I took another step of faith when Byron asked me to lead worship in music at a service and I said, “Yes.” And then another step of faith when I quit my Band Director job to become the full-time Worship Pastor, after Byron left to start new ministries. I took steps into the Something More life, and I was experiencing a new, wonderful kind of life!

So, have you ever experienced or are you currently experiencing any of the Something More symptoms? Do you know what to do next? (If you would like some help with this, feel free to email me at wholelifeworship@gmail.com)

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