Lately I’ve been
pondering the fact that many of us don’t see the need near as intensely as we
should to actually seek Jesus. We think it sufficient to go to church once a
week and maybe have a 5 minute devotional time every once in a while. We think
we need to “put in our time” for Jesus. Often, we are too fascinated by the
things of this world to actually set apart time to seek Jesus with our whole
hearts. What’s the result? Well, we aren’t finding Him. Instead, we are living
miserable, mediocre, defeated lives. However, I’ve discovered that the Bible presents
a whole different pattern.
“And he did evil
because he did not set his heart to seek the Lord.” 2 Chronicles 12: 14
What’s the reason he
did evil? Because he hung out with the wrong crowd? Because he read the wrong
books? Listened to the wrong music? Watched the wrong movies? Though all those
things shouldn’t be done, the real reason and thrust behind them was that he did not seek God. You see, when we aren’t
spending daily time in the Presence of Jesus, we are not equipped to stand
against evil. We don’t know what His voice sounds like because we don’t take
time to listen. We don’t quiet our hearts before Him to actually know His will
for our lives. We may pray every once in a while when we have big decisions to
make, but why should we expect to know what He wants for us or what His voice
sounds like when we only “seek” Him when we need answers (and praying for 2
minutes for a few days about a particular situation doesn’t count as actually “seeking”
His will.)?
“And you shall seek
Me and find Me when you shall search for Me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:
13
Are we seeking Him
with all our hearts? Or are we doing our daily “duty?” What if He became our
greatest Desire? What if our hearts were consumed with Him alone? What if we
set our faces to seek Him and not to rise until we truly know Him?!
What does it look
like to truly seek Jesus?
“Oh God, Thou art my
God; early will I seek Thee” Psalm 63
“Those that seek Me
early will find Me.” Proverbs 8:17
“If our spiritual
life is a joke, if prayer is nonexistent, and if Christ is squeezed into random
corners of our day, then we are susceptible to every pestering problem the
enemy could throw our way – marriage and family disintegration, relational
conflicts, financial frustration, depression, sickness, discouragement, and so
forth. But when our spiritual lives are thriving, when prayer is the foundation
of our existence, every other area of our lives begins to thrive as a result.”
Leslie Ludy
It means denying our
fleshly, lazy existence and making time to seek Jesus. It means denying the
desire for extra sleep or to veg out in front of the TV or to mindlessly hang
out with friends. It means to shut the door and seek the face of the Lord.
I for one am tired of
listening to Christians complain about defeat, depression, or lack of fruit in
ministry when they aren’t setting aside time to pray and seek Jesus. He desires
for us to live victorious, triumphant lives. However, we aren’t because His
life isn’t our life. We’re consumed with the things of the world and aren’t
setting aside time to spend in His Presence and let Him change us.
“Seek and you will find.” Matthew 7: 7
It’s a promise.
