Big Promise

On February 16, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   1 Comment

Psalm 9: 10

For Thou, O Lord, hast not forsaken those who seek Thee.

There are thousands of promises in the Bible. However, they aren’t numbered so that you can go look them up one by one. Here is one though, which perhaps you should mark with a tab and some highlighting so that you can always find your way back to it. What great assurance and grounding for our soul we find in these few simple words.
God has never and will never forsake those who seek Him. Even when people kept sinning, they would run back to God and He was always awaiting their return. He was always keeping a vigil watching for them. He will not forsake us, even when we deserve it.

In truth, all of the power over your relationship with God is in your hands. He has given you His Word. He has taken His position. He says, “I am here. I make Myself available to you and furthermore, I will never, ever forsake you.” We are the ones in control. We choose to seek Him or not. Do we let the world, work, our social lives and all of the other distractions supersede our seeking? Sure we do. I do. Sometimes I awaken myself to the truth and realize that I have not been seeking Him as I should, even as I once did. Then I start again because I have the power over my relationship with God, even as you do.

The question, then, becomes, “How does one seek Yahweh?” The two principle ways to seek Him are prayer and The Word. I wouldn’t suggest you omit either one. You will find Him if you believe you will and you honestly search for Him in the Word. Just talk with Him about scripture. Ask Him what He was thinking when He had those words you just read penned. Ask Him why it was important to Him that those words find their way into our Bible. Ask Him what further revelation He can show you from that scripture. You will be amazed how many messages He can speak to your heart from one short scripture. Talk to Him about today’s verse. Go read the verses before and after it. Find out the context in which it was written. And listen. Look out your window at the trees blowing in the wind and let His thoughts gently float across your mind. I will promise you this, if you seek Him, honestly seek Him, you absolutely will find Him.

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Finding the King

On November 30, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 22: 26

The afflicted (poor) will eat and be satisfied; those who seek Him will praise the LORD. Let your heart live forever!

I am struck by the phrase, “those who seek Him will praise the Lord.” That is such a confident expression. One thing is sure, if you seek Him, you will find him. In Jeremiah 29: 14 God says, “I will be found by you.” Well, if we know that when we seek Him we shall find Him, then I suppose it is not a great logical leap to conclude that there will be praise. How could we find God, or better yet, have Him reveal Himself to us and there not be subsequent shouts of praise? I think the real issue is that we don’t seek Him enough and likely most of us don’t really know how. It really is simple but it is the answer you already know. He can be found in His word. He is His Word. We don’t want to spend the time in the Bible or prayer that we need to. I am not saying it takes a lot of time. By no means! Sometimes I have found Him waiting for me when I just bothered to spend even a little dedicated time with Him. You just are not going to see His glory by saying to Him, “Lord, show yourself to me.” You have to actually seek Him. That is what the verse says. The way you do that is to get into your Bible. It is so much like the Kevin Costner movie, Field of Dreams. Costner’s character kept hearing a voice in his head saying, “If you build it, they will come.” And come they did. Now hear this voice in your head, “If you seek Him, you will find Him.” You already have the promise that you will find Him so there is no risk to you. Don’t you want the King of all creation as your personal friend? Of course you do! Open your Bible and look into His heart and mind.

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3 Things

On September 5, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 34: 10


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

I am impressed again at the beginning of this week that there is a great spiritual key revealed in these few simple words. You know, if you could really hear God’s voice clearly you would surely be successful in everything you do. You would most assuredly be led down the best paths. You would have insight and wisdom that would be enviable.

This sort of grace comes through your intimate, warm relationship with the Lord. That warm relationship comes from your seeking Him with all your heart and strength. If you will do three things you will find tremendous results in a very short time. Start today. Read your Bible. Pray to your Dad. And spend a few minutes before Him in silence. Those three things will launch you into a new level with the Lord of Hosts. Don’t worry about how much you read or how long you pray. Just start where you are. That is where He expects you to begin. He doesn’t expect you to read as much everyday as someone who is in full time ministry. Just read it. Start in Matthew and just read a bit each day. Then spend a few minutes just talking to your Dad. Don’t pray elaborate prayers; simply talk with Him as your friend and father. I wouldn’t even worry about praying for all of the things you think you need. Spend those precious moments just being with Him. Then sit in silence for a few minutes. That’s it; three things that will quickly change your life. Today is a great day to start or start over.

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In Hot Pursuit

On August 25, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Proverb 21: 21            NIV

He who pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor.

Yesterday we saw from verses 17 and 18 of Proverb 21 that the pursuit of pleasure leads to poverty. Today we are fortunate to get to see the other side of the coin. If we wish to have abundant life, prosperity and honor then we must pursue righteousness.

Now, before we fall on our faces, let us review our thinking on righteousness. Many of us were trained in the notion that righteousness equates to good works. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, that kind of “righteousness” is repugnant to God. It is a rancid odor in His nostrils. Righteousness, in a word, is Jesus. 2 Corinthians 5: 21 reads, “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” This means that Jesus, who is and was the righteousness of God, traded his righteousness for our sin. He became our sin so that we could become the righteousness of God. Therefore, our pursuit of Jesus, is necessarily a pursuit of righteousness.

There is an interesting passage about this very topic from the Apostle Paul. “What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith; but Israel pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone” (Romans 9: 30 – 32). The stumbling stone was Jesus. I find this passage amazing. The Israelites, the chosen ones, who pursued righteousness through their works failed while the Gentiles who by faith sought Jesus attained righteousness. Wow!

Shall we, though, take it one step further? The verse for today also says that those who pursue love find life, prosperity and honor. This one is really easy, isn’t it. “The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love (1 John 4: 8). Yeah, you don’t need a theology degree in order to knock this one out of the park. God is love. Therefore, if one pursues God, then that is a pursuit of love and thus the result is life, prosperity and honor. 1 Corinthians 14: 1 says “Pursue love . . ..” It really is that simple.

So, what is the conclusion of all this? Our happiness, prosperity, peace, joy, well-being, life, and honor are found in the pursuit of the Father and the Son, merely in the pursuit. It is not in the tracking down or even in the finding. Your Father and God does the revealing. Your only part is to pursue. “If you seek Him, He will let you find Him” (1 Chronicles 28: 9).

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What we Need

On August 17, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 105: 4


Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His face continually.

If you need strength today, it is in the Lord. You do not even have to seek strength just seek Him. All of the wisdom and knowledge you need are in Him also, so when you seek Him you gain all of the strength you need as well as every other thing you need. Really, all of life can begin to boil down to this concept because if we will seek Him he will give us all that we need in every arena of life. He is willing and able to assist you in every single area of your life. From locating your misplaced keys to the wisdom you need in making an important decision, He is there to assist you. Seek His face continually and He will fill your life with His very essence wherein all good things exist.

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The Seeker

On August 4, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Matthew 6: 33


But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things shall be added to you.
One encounter with God can change your life forever. Having an encounter with God is worth everything. There really is nothing greater than a touch from Him. But how do we find god in our everyday lives? We must seek Him. When we seek Him, we find Him. In Him is the answer to every question we have as well as every need. Our job is to seek Him out and it is His job to provide us with the resources we need. Everything we need, want or desire is in Him. Seek Him with all your heart, all your mind and all your strength and he will give you the desires of your heart. He will be everything you need or want. His touch will fill your heart and heal your hurts. This type of seeking requires commitment and surrender though. If you will be determined to seek Him out, you will most definitely find Him. Seek Him in His word and through your prayers. He will be found by you.
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Seeking and Finding

On June 3, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Colossians 3: 1

If you then have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
I love the “seeking” scriptures because they remind me of the principle task which God has assigned me. I am reminded that my job is to seek Him and it is his job to take care of everything else. That is good news to me. Jesus promised us that if we seek, we will find (Matthew 7: 7). He also told us to seek those things above and God would add all the other things we need. We focus our eyes on Him and he takes care of our earthly worries. This pattern relieves us of worry and draws us closer to Him at the same time. That is a pretty good deal.

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