Seeking

Psalm 34: 10

But they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing.

Matthew 6: 33 says, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.” Christians do not have to run around seeking after “things,” even things they need. In Philippians 4: 19 God promises us he will provide for our needs. Our role and function in this relationship we have with Him is to seek Him. It is His responsibility to provide for our needs as well as everything else. The above verse says we will not lack any good thing.

I do not say this is always an easy thing to do though. The cares of the world come and choke out the Word that was planted in our hearts (Matthew 13: 22). But take a care. Put your effort and energy into reviving that Word in you and sow the Word of the living God into your heart and He will be able to move on your behalf to meet your needs and your desires. Seek Him! Seek Him and don’t worry about the things of this world. You will choke on the cares of this world. And there is no point when it is His good pleasure to give you those things you want. Seek the Lord. Seek His face continually. Let your energy go into seeking him. “I will be found by you” says the Lord as written in Jeremiah 29: 14. Seek him and you will find him and every good thing will be added to you in His name.

The Grand Intercessor

Romans 8: 34

Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.

Jesus completed his work on earth and is now seated at the right hand of the Father. And what does Jesus do now? Is he retired? No. He talks to the Father about our needs. I’ll bet he brags on us too. I can imagine him saying, “Father, just look at that child of yours, how she has reacted in love to that person. Father, send a special blessing to that child of yours.” Can you imagine that? How wonderful. And when he sees us struggling, he tells the Father that we need a little help. What a magnificent thing this is. Jesus sits next to our heavenly Father and prays on our behalf. Thank you Jesus!

The Good Father

Romans 8: 32

He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?

God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son (John 3:16). What will he not give us now that He has given us His best? Sometimes people have difficulty grasping that Father God is interested in every single aspect of their lives and furthermore that He is willing to help them in all things. But this verse really brings home to us the message that God is more than willing to do all things for you. He is more than willing to give to you all the things you need or want. After all, he sent His only son so that we could be reconciled unto Him. Certainly he did not do that only to remain estranged and far removed from us. No. He has called us into the kingdom of His dear Son so that we can be one with him. He wants to be a good father to us. He will certainly give us all these other things; things we need, things we want. We just seek Him and he adds all the other things so that we never even have to go after them for ourselves. Save your energy. Do not strive for your needs or desires of your heart. After all, He has already provided for your eternal life and blessing. Will he not provide for you in this life too? Will he give you His very best and then withhold the lesser part? I don’t think so. He gives freely and not sparingly to those who love Him.

Well, Satisfied . . . I’m Satisfied

Psalm 34: 12-13

Who is the man who desires life, and loves length of days that he may see good? Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit.

Do you desire good life? Do you desire to have a long life filled with the goodness of God? David tells us in this psalm how to get just that. He instructs us to keep our lips holy unto God. Speak words of life and healing rather than words of death and destruction. Don’t indulge in telling lies or even telling half truths because that is also deceitful.

Every time you open your mouth about a situation you can either give a report on what the devil is doing or you can report on what God is doing. You can say, “Oh, my knee hurts,” reporting on the hard work of the devil. Or you can say, “By his stripes, I am healed,” telling of the good works of God.

If you desire a long life filled with the promises of God, then you need to fill your mouth with the good news of the Lord. Speak out of your own mouth all that he says regarding every situation in your life. Are you broke? Or are you rich? Are you sick or are you healed? What does God say about your situation? Find out if you don’t know and then repeat what he says.

Are You Kidding Me God?

1 Peter 3: 8-9

To sum up, let all be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil, or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing.

We really need to get this message and by “we” I mean “me”. Time and time again Jesus taught us to give a blessing when others curse and persecute us. There really isn’t much that is harder than to bless some that is a thorn in your flesh, the bane of your existence. It seems like God is being unfair with us and that he is asking the impossible of us. Well, two things about that. First, he is asking the impossible. You probably cannot do this in your own strength. I know I cannot. But “Let the weak say, ‘I am strong’” (Joel 3: 10). When it is impossible to you, then you have to allow His power to work through you. Secondly, God is not trying to get something from you. He is trying to get something to you. Look at the last sentence. God often requires things from us. We need to get it in our heads that he does so in order that we may receive a blessing. He needs us to cooperate with Him so that he can get the blessing into our lives. When will we just learn to trust him? When will we believe that he is a good God and that he wants to bestow good on us? You were called for that very purpose, that God may show you the exceeding goodness of himself in Christ Jesus. So forgive others. Do not get into strife no matter how much the other person tempts you. Meet annoyance and persecution with blessing. Be humble and harmonious no matter how difficult. Through this God’s purpose in the world comes.

Gifted Builders

1 Peter 4: 10

As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another.

God has sown his good gifts into the Body of Christ for the building up of the entire body. You have different gifts than do I. Yours are different than your best friend’s likely. That is because we are supposed to use our gifts collectively to build a stronger house. There is no purpose in two of us having the same gifts as there is no reason for us to have two plumbers and no electrician. No one’s job is more important than another’s. It takes them all in order to build a strong house. Are you gifted? Are you blessed? Those blessing and gifts are for you to use to build up others. If you are blessed, then you should be seeking out ways to bless others. God wants to bless you but he also wants you to grow up and be like him. What does that mean? He wants you to outgrow being a consumer only and become a sower. He will continue to sow good things in your life but don’t be the clog in the plumbing. Keep that blessing moving. The more you sow, the more there will be for others to sow with. 

Word Shield

1 Peter 1: 5

…who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

It is important for us to remind ourselves that God has provided for our protection. It is his power that saves us but that power is at work through our faith. His power is activated and operated through our faith. When we speak words of faith, we activate his power in our lives. We say out of our mouths that God is our fortress and our protector; he is our shield and our refuge. When we do speak these strong words of faith, the power of God comes on the scene to fulfill its role. God said that his word never returns to him void without having accomplished that for which it was sent (Isaiah 55:11). So when we boldly profess his word regarding protection, that word must bring about God’s protective forces. His angels are standing by to do the works of the Lord and they hearken to His word. Appropriate all of God’s blessings for yourself by boldly declaring all that God has promised you.