Of course, Danny may have a word or two of contradiction to share, but even he admits that, for the most part, I stay on a pretty even keel. Fill up my tummy, provide me with a warm, dry, safe place to sleep, and I'm as content as a kitten.

If only I was a kitten, it would be enough. I'm not.

Created in the image of God, there is more to me than just my physical appetites. There are hungers and yearnings, heartaches and joys, and a keen sense that no mere animal has ever experienced, that tells me when something is lacking.

Jesus concisely identifies these appetites in Matthew 5:1-19 at the beginning of what has come to be called the Sermon on the Mount.

Man has an inherent hunger for God. When he is able to identify that hunger, he knows the truth of Matthew 5:2 that says he is poor in spirit.

Recognizing that hunger, man begins to mourn all that was forfeit in the garden, for in that first loss, we learn of all of the losses that were birthed there and mourn them as well.

Thus recognizing his desperate plight, his true condition before a holy God, man becomes humble in heart and begins to hunger and to thirst for righteousness, developing an appetite similar to God's own, whose heart is broken daily by our penchant for sin.

This man, poor in spirit, mournful, humble before God, and hungry for the things of God, learns from God a most valuable lesson. Mercy. And because he learns mercy from God, he becomes merciful. And in learning mercy, his heart becomes purer day-by-day and he learns that the only thing truly worth fighting for is peace, peace with God, and he becomes a peacemaker, leading others to recognize that first hunger.

The world answers these yearnings in a variety of ways, none of them particularly appealing, at least in the long term. Money, fame, sexual prowess, power, pride, the list is endless and none of them satisfy. Empty calories, they serve only to deaden and dull the appetite.

The progression in Matthew's Gospel is significant. There is a beginning, followed by a process and ultimately, fulfillment.

Growing up with two brothers and two sisters in a home with admittedly limited resources, I learned early the benefits of prioritization. I knew I couldn't have it all, so I selected from that which was available with great care.

I used the same approach when I first encountered this passage of Scripture. I sincerely believed that I had to choose only one of the seven options offered.

And how do you choose aright? After all, the poor in spirit have a place in the kingdom. Those that mourn (and if you haven't yet, you one day will) will be comforted. The meek will inherit the earth, and there find every need met, while those that hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled.

If I am merciful, I will receive mercy. (That was, hands down the front-runner for many years. I know how much mercy I'll need, and therefore I try to always be merciful to others.) But the promise that followed mercy was also so dear to my heart.

To see God? Oh, what a terrifyingly wonderful joy that would be. And the promise that follows that one was even more desirable, to become a child of God!

Thank God for a heart that isn't satisfied at day's end with the world's meager fare. Because all of these hungers and all of the promises are answered in Jesus. All of the yearnings placed in the heart of man are fully satisfied in in God's Son. And they are answered every day. Even though we awaken poor in spirit, by day's end, we can rest knowing we are a child of God.

**"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock." Matthew 7:24, 25 (NIV)

Things you won't see in heaven:

Empty bread baskets