This evening at our church we had an interesting service led by our interim pastor, who just happens to be my brother-in-law. He entitled our time together simply, "Seeking God". Since this was a new type of service for all of us, I really didn't know what to expect. Afterwards, the importance of the lessons we learned have been resonating in my heart, and this seemed like a good place to share them.
Living in a farming community, most of us can relate to the concept of "sowing" and "reaping". You plant (sow) seeds into prepared ground, and after a few months you reap a harvest. Our introduction to the seeking service was found in Hosea 10:12.
Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;
for it is time to seek the Lord, until He comes
and showers righteousness on you.
When is it time to seek the Lord? I would say there is no set time to start, but in God's timetable "now" would fit any set of circumstances. It was stressed we should not make it a matter of intellectual analysis, but rather a seeking that is both spirit and soul dominant. This type of seeking will result in a deep and meaningful transformation of our lives.
The word "seek" can be found 244 times in the Bible. We took time to look at 17 of these verses, with everyone being assigned a verse or set of verses to read. I am not going to take the time to write out all of these verses, but hopefully you can find some time in your week to look them up. Not all have the same perspective, so I will add a little something we learned after hearing each of them read.
- Matthew 6:33 - Seeking as a priority
- Hebrews 11:6 - Seeking is a requirement
- 1 Chronicles 16:11 - Seeking results in rejoicing
- Proverbs 8:17 - God loves a seeker
- Jeremiah 29:13 - Seek with all your heart
- Deuteronomy 4:29 - Seek with all your heart AND soul
- Matthew 7:7-8 - In the original Greek, "seek" in these verses is in the present progressive tense, which means it is not a one time thing, but rather a command to "seek and keep on seeking"
- Psalm 14:2 - God is looking for seekers
- Psalm 34:10 - A promise for those who seek
- Isaiah 55:6-7 - An invitation to seek
- Lamentations 3:25-26 - The Lord is good to those who seek Him, but it requires waiting quietly.
- Psalm 105:4 - Seek always
- Amos 5:4 - Seek and live!
- Zephaniah 2:3 - Seeking gives us protection
- Psalm 34:4 - Seeking delivers us from fear
- James 4:8 - Seeking involves drawing near to God
- 1 Chronicles 22:19 - Devote your heart and soul to seeking
Between 2005 and 2013, my practice was to look back on my week and find a "God Lesson" from my everyday world as a bank teller. Looking back, I question if I was seeking the lesson more than the "Lesson Giver". After tonight, I have a broader perspective, and desire to seek more consistently, not just for lessons, but for the One who gives them.
The good thing is we don't have to go searching for God in the seeking process. He is already here, every moment of every day, no matter where you are. We simply need to awaken to the reality of His Presence.
We ended our time together listening to a number of songs with a seeking theme. Music has a way of touching our spirit through the soul, preparing us to enter into a seeking mode. You can search for any of these songs on YouTube, and be blessed:
- The More I Seek You (Kari Jobe)
- Seek Ye First (Maranatha Music)
- You Are My All in All
- I Will Sing (Don Moen)
- O Lord, We Seek Your Face (Worship Central)
