Many people today are at a crossroads between freedom and fulfillment in our search for happiness. Should one pursue their desires in this material realm, or should they abandon their desires and move to the immaterial in an escapist, meditative fashion?

Well, first let’s define what freedom and fulfillment are.

Freedom, to put it simply, is being free from the bondages of desire. This is what many Eastern spiritual forms put front and center: Don’t be a slave to desire! This is very good! It is good to be free from cycles of addiction and self-abuse. However, freedom itself does not mean desire is bad, it just shows that desire can enslave.

Fulfillment, on the other hand, is allowing the heart of one’s individual personhood to be properly satisfied in their current life situation. This is multi-faceted and though it includes material possessions, it also includes vocation, community, and a sense of safety. This is what Western spiritual forms primarily focus on. The important thing to note here is that these spiritualities put a big emphasis on not allowing just any desire to be what satisfies us, but properly ordered (read: wise) desires aimed towards the highest good of both ourselves and those around us (summum bonum is the Latin phrase).

So which one are we to choose? Well, it’s simple. You don’t have to choose one or the other.

Let go of the desires that are making you or other people miserable, and reorder your life around desires that help others, things that you enjoy, and give your life a sense of abundance and happiness (whilst not hurting others).

On the one hand, Jesus points to freedom:

“A man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.” — Luke 12:15
“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” — John 8:36

In addition to that, Jesus points to fulfillment:

“I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” — John 10:10
“That my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” — John 15:11

In Christ, we are not here to suppress our desires or mitigate them. We are here to align them with Him without thinking they are Christ Himself. Christ alone is what sustains, and in that sustaining, we find that we naturally move towards desires that are upright and righteous. In moving towards what is most Godly in our day to day actions, we move closer to God in both this life and the hereafter. As Jesus once said, “Store up your treasures in Heaven.”

How We Can Apply This Teaching Today

Think about what kind of desires you are moving towards in your day to day life.

Ask yourself, “Are these really in alignment with what I know to be good and true and holy?”

If they aren’t, perhaps think about ways you can realign them with God and His plan for you. If that is not possible, then consider changing and taking them out of your life completely.

If you struggle with desiring too little, perhaps in a depressive fashion, then you may wish to challenge your ideas on desire. Desire is a good thing to have! (Psalm 37:4) Desire is the very thing that points to our wish for fulfillment in this very life. Desire only hurts us when we allow it to enslave us (idolizing it) or we are desiring things that are not healthy for us. In order to discover what it is you personally desire, you may start by asking yourself of times in your life when you genuinely felt open to the joys of life. Can you see if there’s a way to start re-integrating those desires back into your life in a healthy and Godly fashion? Whether it’s reading fantasy books, watching movies, playing sports, video games, find a way to reignite your enthusiasm for life!

What’s important to remember is that the problem is not desire itself, but rather, what we are desiring.

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” — Matthew 6:33

When we align our hearts with God, we naturally seek to engage in desires that are worth going after. Place the highest good first, and everything else shall fall into place.

“Aim at Heaven and you will get earth ‘thrown in’: aim at earth and you will get neither.” — C.S. Lewis