Earnestly Seeking

Hosea 5: ¹⁵ Then I will return to my lair
    until they have borne their guilt
    and seek my face—
in their misery
    they will earnestly seek me.”

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“LORD PLEASE HELP!” were the only words out my mouth as I clutched my chest in pain. After being on the fence about this “GOD” thing, I pleaded for my life because I had never felt such intense pain at the time.

• There were times I did not pay much attention to GOD.
• There were times I did not seek GOD, only pleasure.
• There were times I did not pay much attention to what I was doing, not thinking whether I offended GOD or not.

When times were “good”, I forgot GOD. I mean I knew HE existed and I knew about salvation, its just that I didn’t really need HIM at that moment. I would call HIM when I needed HIM and I am sure HE would be right there when I called HIM right? Maybe,

• GOD said to me “I AM a jealous GOD.”
• GOD said to me “I AM the first” meaning I should always place HIM first.
• GOD said to me “Seek first the kingdom of GOD” meaning “Seek first the kingdom of GOD.”

GOD wants me to place HIM first in my life in every way. Unfortunately I don’t always do that. In fact sometimes I go so far away from HIM that HE has to place trials in my life to bring me back to seeking HIS face. Usually the trials are so large that only GOD can fix them.

HE rips through my feeble plan like a hot knife through butter and makes me realize I need HIM. It doesn’t have to be this way. GOD wants me to seek HIM daily and “All will be well.” HE promises protection to those who seek HIS face and HE has never let me down.

• Are you going through a trial?
• Do you feel exhausted trying to get yourself out of the trial?
• Can you seek GOD’s face first today without expectations?

Who Wants Pain?

Proverbs 20: ³⁰ Blows and wounds scrub away evil,
    and beatings purge the inmost being.

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Sitting by the window was probably the worst thing I could do. I would stare outside, longing to be in the fresh air, then like a clap of thunder, the teacher would inevitably call me back into reality. “Why do I have to go to school anyway?” I said in fourth grade.

• Sometimes I feel like giving up and taking the easy route.
• Sometimes I want vacation instead of work.
• Sometimes I desire resting in a meadow of laziness rather than plowing a field of work.

I decided not to go to attend class when I went to college. My grades suffered and I was told I may not graduate. I had to buckle down and study. It was painful. I decided to start going to school and found it to actually be easier than I thought.

• GOD has shown me that I need to be disciplined in order to stay on HIS path.
• GOD has shown me that I sometimes need a whooping in order to get focused.
• GOD has shown me that nothing in life comes easy and my focus should be HIM.

Bumps and bruises in life teach me that I need GOD every step of the way. HE takes my evil behavior and turns it into righteousness by allowing a little turmoil in my life. My desire gets purged and I can then praise HIM.

• Are you going through a beating in life right now?
• Have you ever done evil in your life?
• Can you change your course and follow GOD the way HE wants you to follow HIM?
• Will you accepts the blows and wounds as a method of purging instead of punishing?

Taking the test

Proverbs 17: ³ The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold,
    but the Lord tests the heart.

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Looking at the other students take their test was all I could do as I did not know many of the answers. I sat there perplexed, staring at the paper. “LORD, please bring something to mind” I desperately asked. Nothing came. I handed in my test and slumped away from the class. To my surprise I got a “D” instead of failing. The entire situation felt pitiful.

• Sometimes I look at tests wrong.
• Sometimes I think tests are awful.
• Sometimes I feel tests are not my thing.

When I hear the word “test” I still cringe to this day. I mean I do not like tests because they do not seem like they are in my favor. It seems like all the information flies out of my  mind and I can’t recall whatever I need at that time only. Doe GOD treat me that way when HE “tests” my heart? NO!

• GOD’s test for me is refining like silver in a crucible.
• GOD’s test for me is refining like gold in a furnace.
• GOD’s test for me is refining through situations and circumstances.

A heart full of sin is GOD’s specialty. HE takes my heart through the fiery furnace of life, allowing it to feel the heat so the things that don’t belong can melt away. GOD takes away the things that distract me from HIM and leaves me in that furnace until my heart is fully refined. HE burns away fear, doubt, lust, envy, anger and replaces it with love, joy, peace, humility, kindness, grace, mercy and forgiveness.

I have to admit, I don’t like the process of having to go through the fire, but I love the results that only GOD can bring.

• Are you in the fire?
• Do you want to get out of the fire before you are fully refined?
• Will you let GOD take you entirely through the situation?

Today Not Tomorrow

Psalm 134: ¹ Praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord
    who minister by night in the house of the Lord.
² Lift up your hands in the sanctuary
    and praise the Lord.

³ May the Lord bless you from Zion,
    he who is the Maker of heaven and earth.

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Dinner was all I could think about. I ran inside and there it was, on the table as usual. I watched TV and went to bed. When I got up the next day I went outside to ride my bike. I remembered leaving it by the back porch right next to the door. I mean we had a fence; my bike should not have just walked away! As reality sank in I realized my bike was gone forever. I moped and fretted the remainder of that summer. “Everyone” went bike riding and I was left at home.

• There are times when I do not feel like praising.
• There are times when I do not feel like singing.
• There are times when I do not feel like smiling.

I was down in the dumps but realized that I could not stay there forever. I mean it was a bike. I went in and grabbed some toy trucks that I had abandoned and rekindled my excitement. I invited a few bike riders into the “secure” fenced area and we built the most marvelous, um whatever we were building, thing in the world!

• Sorrow happens, but GOD doesn’t want me to stay in sorrow.
• Pain happens, but GOD doesn’t want me to stay in pain.
• Misery happens but GOD doesn’t want me to remain miserable.

GOD wants me to learn how to praise HIM in the middle of my pain. HE does not want me to remain as a child, moping and pouting over loss. HE wants me to grow up, stand up and praise HIM! HE doesn’t want me to wait until everything has been cleared up and put away with a nice bow. GOD wants me to recognize HIM and HIS marvelous power even before one step is made to fix the situation.

GOD’s plan is awesome and HE understands my pain. HE isn’t heartless, cruel or sadistic. GOD loves me dearly and is in more pain than I am during the problem. The least I can do is praise HIM!

• Are you waiting to praise GOD?
• Do you feel you have to wait on HIM to fix your situation to your specifications in order to praise HIM?
• Can you praise GOD today instead of waiting for tomorrow?

Be carried on HIS wings

Deuteronomy 32: ¹⁰ In a desert land he found him,

    in a barren and howling waste.
He shielded him and cared for him;
    he guarded him as the apple of his eye,
¹¹ like an eagle that stirs up its nest
    and hovers over its young,
that spreads its wings to catch them
    and carries them aloft.
¹² The Lord alone led him;
    no foreign god was with him.

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Sitting on the edge of my couch I wondered how I was going to succeed. I mean the letter from the university said I was no longer in the university and I had no backup plan. I went in and plead my case. Years later I graduated.

Sitting on another couch I wondered if I would ever leave the small town I worked in. I didn’t even know how to search for a job. Years later I moved to a large city with a wonderful job.

Sitting on yet another couch… (Apparently I do a lot of thinking on the couch) I pondered my future as I was out of work for the first time since I was 15. My entire identity was wrapped up in the corporate culture. Years later GOD directs my steps!

• Being in the desert doesn’t feel comfortable to me.
• Being in the desert doesn’t feel enjoyable to me.
• Being in the desert doesn’t feel wonderful to me.

Each time I have been in the “desert” I couldn’t see what GOD was doing. I felt abandoned and alone. BUT GOD always had something different in mind.

• GOD shields me from dangers I don’t even know about.
• GOD watches out for me in the middle of the desert as the apple of HIS eye.
• GOD catches me when I stumble and fall and carries me to new heights I would have never dreamt of.

GOD provides amazing rides. What seems like a desert is merely a training ground for bigger and better responsibility. My response to HIS training can grow me if I accept it.

• Are you in the middle of the desert?
• Do you feel a bit lost?
• Can you recognize that GOD is protecting you?
• Won’t you get rid of any anger and bitterness toward GOD and recognize HE is with you?

Call on the LORD!

Numbers 10: ⁹ Suppose you go into battle in your own land. And suppose it is against an enemy who is beating you down. Then blow a blast on the trumpets. If you do, I will remember you. I will save you from your enemies. I am the Lord your God. 

¹⁰ You must also blow the trumpets when you are happy. Blow them at your appointed feasts. Blow them at your New Moon Feasts. Blow them when you sacrifice your burnt offerings. Blow them when you sacrifice your friendship offerings. They will remind me of you. I am the Lord your God.”

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Scowling faces and suspicious glances made us notice a group of guys strategically positioning themselves. My brother and I were headed to a baseball game and decided to get something to eat.  About two blocks into our five block trek we saw an ambush collecting.

My brother calmly said “RUN!” Of course he would seeing his skill was in track. I could barely keep up! “LORD please help us!” We made it to the game. I pretty much forgot about GOD from that point and enjoyed the game.

• When problems arise I call on GOD to help me but when things are going well I may forget.
• When I am in dire straits I call on GOD for assistance but in times of plenty I may forget.
• When issues are all around me I call on GOD for comfort but during times of leisure I may forget.

GOD wants me to remember HIM in times of need and in times of plenty. He wants to see when I am crying and definitely wants to join in on times of celebration. I mean it does make sense. HE created me to be with me all the time. HE actually enjoys my company!

• Do you have a relationship with GOD that only asks for things?
• When is the last time you praised HIM for something?
• Can you have a balance of requests and praise?
• Won’t you include GOD in your celebration today?

Praising GOD is worth it

Exodus 15:

² “The Lord is my strength and my defense;
    he has become my salvation.
He is my God, and I will praise him,
    my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
³ The Lord is a warrior;
    the Lord is his name.

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Suitcases filled the car and we were on our way. Vacation was finally here and the drive was part of the fun. About an hour or so into the drive a very strange light appeared on the dashboard that could not be ignored. Soon after, the vehicle began to slow to a crawl. I move over to the shoulder and we called around trying to find the nearest dealer we could be towed to.

Three Thousand Six Hundred was the quote for a new transmission, but the service manager dug a little deeper and saw our impeccable maintenance history. He said “you don’t have to pay anything.” We sung a wonderful song!

• Sometimes I have to go through the pain in order to sing praise to GOD.
• Sometimes I have to go through problems in order to praise GOD.
• Sometimes I have to have trouble in my life in order to praise GOD.

I actually should praise HIM before HE delivers me from my trouble. HE has delivered me over and over again so I should look forward to watching HIS might unfurl before me. Praising GOD doesn’t manipulate HIM into my positive outcome rather it shows my allegiance to HIM in accepting HIS route.

HIS plan is best and I can praise HIM for it. I must admit, I do sing a little louder when HE does deliver me from pain!

• Are you waiting for delivery?
• Are you going through a difficult time?
• Can you stop and take a moment to praise GOD right now, thanking HIM for HIS method of delivery?

GOD is concerned

Exodus 3: ⁷ The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. ⁸ So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.

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Sitting in my apartment, staring out in space, life seemed to be a mess.  My grades were suffering.  It seemed as if every bill collector knew my phone number.  Then a knock on the door startled me into reality. “Who is it?” I asked. They said my name with an inflection of inquisition.

“Yes” I replied. “You’ve been served” the sheriff replied. In my helpless stupor I had not paid a number of parking tickets.  “Why is this happening to me?” I screamed out!

• “Why me” is the question I scream when things seem to be going wrong.
• “What now” is the question I exclaim when yet another situation arises.
• “How long” is the question I moan when the trial seems to go on and on.

“Is GOD even listening to me” is usually the thought that pops in my head when things seem to go off track. Then I try to get righteous by telling GOD how good I am by rolling down a list of how I served HIM in the past as if HE doesn’t know. Maybe I am thinking of GOD the wrong way.

• GOD is concerned when I go through trials.
• GOD is concerned when I hurt inside.
• GOD is concerned when trouble knocks on my door.

HE is so concerned about me that HE decided to do something about it.  JESUS volunteered to rescue me from death and the FATHER and HOLY SPIRIT agreed. My belief in the act of JESUS becoming a human to die specifically for me and HIS resurrection relieves my situation.

I am now part of the most powerful family I could ever ask for. Now GOD’s promises flow over me and I am truly forgiven and blessed in spite of my sins and situations.

• Are you going through something?
• Does it seem like you have been in the same situation for a while?
• Can you stop fretting for a moment to praise GOD for HIS many blessings anyway?
• Won’t you open your heart to the understanding that GOD is concerned about you?

How much longer?

Revelation 5: ⁹ When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. ¹⁰ They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?”

¹¹ Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters, were killed just as they had been.

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We traveled by car to go on “vacation” and the scenery was not appealing and it wasn’t really a vacation. We were headed to some relative and it was going to take a million hours to get there! “How much longer” I would ask only to be met with “relax, we’ll get there.”

This impatience spread to other parts of my life. When will I graduate? When will I get promoted? When will I get married? When Will I get a new job? When will this problem ever end? LORD, how much longer was my question.

• When I’m in pain I cannot see the destination, only my present location.
• When I’m challenged I’m blinded to my journey because it felt like I was standing still.
• When I’m feeling lost I think everything around me is lost as well because I can’t see the big picture.

One false expectation I have is I can make a sliver of heaven here on this cursed planet.  If I could just get the right amount of cash and if people would just act right and if my stuff would just last and if my health would just be good enough then I will believe GOD has HIS hand in it.

GOD says different.

• GOD says to me “no matter how difficult the road, stay on the path.”
• GOD says to me “ you've come this far by faith, no turning back.”
• GOD says to me “I have a white robe for you, which means your sins are forgiven.”

When life is filled with desperation GOD is calm and still because HE knows HIS great plan for me cannot be disturbed. In this dystopian society GOD is my focus.

• Are you sick and tired of being sick and tired?
• Are you ready for “this” to be finished?
• Can you focus on GOD who holds the beginning and end of your situation?
• In the middle of your situation can you reach out to GOD to gain strength to help others?

Why am I surprised?

1 Peter 4: ¹² Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. ¹³ But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.

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Ever had one of those mornings? I mean this day was important because it would determine my future.  I had overslept because my alarm clock took a day off and buzzed softly that day, but I could still make it. I jumped in the car and it wouldn’t start. There was no way I was going to make it to the interview because it was clear across campus. “Why is this happening to me” I thought to myself!

• When difficult situations arise I throw a pity party and ask why me.
• When I feel a slightly discomforted I look around to change the environment and when I can’t I ask why me.
• When I am not getting my way and it seems like things are breaking I throw up my hands and ask why me.

“Why me” is my question to GOD when I don’t like what’s going on.  I mean “Aren’t I serving YOU well” is my question to HIM.  Then my bargaining comparisons appear by saying “Look at those other people who don’t serve you…they seem to be getting away with everything” as if to say “GOD YOU don’t know what YOU are doing.”

• GOD’s plan for me includes the difficulty that I go through.
• GOD’s plan for me includes a season of pain that I must endure.
• GOD’s plan for me includes some turbulent times that I have to persevere.

I don’t like tough circumstances, but every time I have gone through them I actually feel stronger and a bit wiser. I really shouldn’t be surprised when a situation arises. I actually should know by now that what I’m facing will grow me in ways I never would have grown had I now gone through the situation. GOD’s plan is a great one for me and I should always know that.

• Are you going through some difficult situation?
• Are you facing tough circumstances?
• Can you face your situation as a growth opportunity?
• Will you seek GOD in the middle of this storm and feel HIS comfort?