by Calven Celliers
Last week in our Team meeting, our staff devotion centred around the whole issue of seeking God.
The Word of God is full of commands for us as God’s people to seek Him; too many to mention them all in this blog…
“11 Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always.”
(1 Chronicles 16:11NIV)
“13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
(Jeremiah 29:13NIV)
“10 Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.”
(Psalm 9:10NIV)
“25The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him.”
(Lamentations 3:25NIV)
“7Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”
(Matthew 7: 7 & 8NIV)
As I gave this issue of seeking God some more thought during the course of the week, I contemplated the reality of how if we’re not moving toward God, then we’re moving away from Him. If I put my Christian life in neutral, in other words if I stop seeking to learn and grow as a believer, I will naturally go the wrong way.
There is, however, a biblical promise that we can depend on, and that’s the fact that we will only find God when we seek Him with all our heart.
But how do we go about seeking Him?
Let’s be honest, seeking anything requires time and effort. The very word connotes a strong desire and an energetic quest to achieve it. We all have ambitions and desires. And while this is by no means wrong, we should analyse our priorities by asking, “Where do I invest my time and energy? What or who occupies my thoughts?” As important as our earthly pursuits, responsibilities, and relationships may be, they cannot compare to the value of a life spent seeking the Lord.
Imagine if you discovered a very productive vein of gold on your property. I don’t for one minute believe that you would just stroll out and look at it occasionally. No, you would get proper equipment and diligently chip away at the rocks and collect the precious metal. In the same way, seeking the Lord is not a quick or occasional encounter but a wholehearted, intentional effort to know Him more intimately and follow Him more closely.
When our desire for the Lord surpasses our eagerness for other pursuits, following through becomes more natural. But hunger for the Lord can be like an acquired taste. The more we pursue Him, the greater our hunger will be. However, if we ignore Him, what little appetite we have will diminish even further. Do you find that the latter describes your experience? If so, ask the heavenly Father to whet your appetite for Him, and then follow through by making the effort to seek Him.
The most obvious place to begin is with Scripture and prayer. Set aside time each day for meditating on God’s Word; listen for His voice, slowly digest what you read, talk to the Lord, ask Him questions, and apply what you learn to your life. Begin studying the Bible. Some of you may say, “I’ve never been into that.” My advice: Get into it! The deep things of God don’t just drop into our brains; they are placed there through diligent study.
Author and pastor Greg Laurie comments that “There are a lot of fair-weather followers today who fill the pews of churches. Some are nothing more than thrill seekers looking for a spiritual experience. Others come simply to appease their conscious for the way they live the rest of the week. But then there are those who really want to know who God is. They really want to know what His Word says. They want to obey it. It is their desire in life to really learn more about Jesus Christ.”
The Christian life is meant to be a pursuit of God. You’ve got to put in time and effort. To walk through the door of salvation and stand still, never drawing any closer to Him, is to miss the treasures that are available in Christ. Those who seek Him soon discover that knowing Him is the greatest reward of all. By neglecting the Lord, you cheat yourself of all the benefits He promises to those who diligently seek Him.
Remember: “7… seek and you will find …” (Matthew 7: 7NIV)
God bless you as you pursue Him with all your heart,
Calven
