Why do I feel as though a weight is dragging me down at my chest?

on Oct 17, 2025

From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham

Q: Feeling empty has got to be one of the weirdest feelings in the world. As I write this, w; there’s something not quite right? – E. H.

A: “Why am I so empty?” This is a question many people ask. We’re taught to be independent, to make it on our own. We admire those who appear to be successful. Yet within each of us is a deep-seated frustration: “I ought to be better. I believe I was made for something greater; there must be more to life than this.”

Feelings can cause us to struggle toward some unnamed goal. While we’re told to “plan ahead,” few really think about the future. A good many people make spontaneous decisions but never consider the consequences. When their world begins to crumble, they look back and wonder how they got where they are. They begin to feel empty inside, never realizing that this emptiness is the absence of God in their lives.

Once there was a brilliant young lawyer who didn’t seem to find a need for God. He began to write about a famous person, hoping to find a surprising secret to his life. In the process of his research, he discovered that the man had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, which led the young attorney on his own spiritual quest.

Filling the empty place in the human heart is found only in God. In this Age of Quest, the most important thing is our personal search for answers concerning life that will lead us to the One who created life in the first place. His name is Almighty God, and He cares deeply for mankind and proved it by making a way for us to have eternal life and joy unspeakable. “You will show me the path of life; in Your presence [Lord] is fullness of joy” (Psalm 16:11, NKJV).

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(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)