Seek and you will find- A devotion.

This is a devotion that I wrote awhile back... but it has been good for me to re-read it and I figured it would be good to share on the blog as well! 

Where to start? This is always the first question I have when I begin to write anything. I want to make a first good impression to my readers. To get them hooked. But I've been learning that I can’t keep focused on making my intro perfect. In fact, this is true with most anything in life. In most circumstances you have to “just do it” as Nike would say.

I think it is the same in our relationship with Christ. As Christians we should strive to grow closer to our God. To learn more of His wisdom and to discover the truths He wants us to know. In a way, we already have our intro. We know He is our Savior, and we have accepted that gift. But where do we go from here? Of course going to church is important, but for so many of us, that becomes our only form of worship. God desires us to worship Him in every part of our lives.

There are a few ways we can have a growing relationship with God. Unlike this world’s way of thinking, our relationship with God is our ONLY form of true peace. The world tells us we can make our own peace. By yoga, meditation, drugs, sleep, diet…you get the picture. While some of things can definitely be relaxing and peaceful, without keeping God in the picture, there will still be a form of emptiness. It scares me to think that even as Christians, we forget how perfect the peace of God is. That throughout our days we aren't aware of His presence. It happens to all of us. It is my desire that in having a closer relationship with God, that He will be our peace, and that we can find rest from Him in every situation. That He will truly become the center of everything we do.

That brings me to the different ways that we have to connect with our Father. It really comes down to seeking Him. The Bible says “If you seek Him, He will be found.” (1 Chronicles 28:9) So it is rational to say that if we are looking for God in the situations we face on a day to day basis, we will find the peace of God, the love of God, the strength of God, the truth of God, and every other perfect thing our Father has to offer us.

The power of prayer is something that is talked about quite often in Christian settings. We know it is our way of talking to God and we have seen Him answer our prayers in ways we could never have even dreamed of. I think even prayer is something that we can take for granted though. We pray for some pretty specific things sometimes, and during specific times of trouble or of need. But it is such a great gift to realize that God knows our situation. During those times we don’t have to lay out a plan for Him, all we really need to do is go to Him. To pray for His will, to ask for His rest and for His help, and to listen. How do I listen? That is something only God can answer. Ask Him these things, ask Him how you can find rest, and ask Him to show you his will. Ask for wisdom and understanding. Give thanks.

The other way we have to connect with God is through the Bible. This is our only weapon of offense against the devil. Read Ephesians 6:10-18 (right now!:):) …even if you've already read it before). You’ll see that the armor of God is mostly defensive, but the sword of the Spirit is our only offensive weapon. It must be extremely powerful if that’s the only weapon we need to fight against Satan. It can be hard to feel motivated to read the Bible at times…to read anything for that matter. But fight against the flesh and dig into His word. It will become easier as you seek God. It will become less of a chore and more of a desire. Read verse 18 again. Pray in the Spirit on ALL occasions with ALL kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, BE ALERT and always keep on praying for all your brothers and sisters in Christ. This is somewhat of a paraphrase but it is definitely a verse to live by…there are many though, and hopefully you will find many more as you begin to dig more and more into God’s word. My hope is that these devotions will help me as well as my friends to grow and learn more about our amazing Father.

There is always more that we can learn-always more knowledge and more wisdom. I don’t know about you, but I never want to stop learning! I want all the tools I can to live a life that is pleasing to God. I don’t want to be ignorant. I want answers. I want confidence.

Philippians 3:12-16
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already attained.

Before you read on farther…take a minute to really think about those verses. Reread them. If you want to, write down what those verses say and mean to you. Pray that God reveals something through those verses.

-

I learned in my college study skills class that reading something and then writing or saying it aloud in your own words really helps your mind to process the information and keep it in your memory. So I would encourage you to do that.

Here is what those verses mean to me:
I am not perfect. I haven’t learned everything there is to know…but want to keep learning as much as I can. There is no use dwelling on my past and how fun things used to be…because God has an exciting future planned out for me. I want to focus my attention toward and strive to make the most of every day and fulfilling His plan in my life. His prize is better than any earthly treasure. God has given us this knowledge… and because we are mature, let’s not forget where our focus should be. If we keep Him at the center of our lives, he will make things clear to us. But we have to live out what we know. We have to live out the knowledge that He has given us.

Read Matthew 7: 7-8.

-

When we want to be closer to God… He is there. We just have to seek Him. Think about the word seek. I think of it like searching…when you are searching for something…you are actively moving around looking behind and under things. You aren’t sitting on a couch hoping that it just appears right in front of you. We must seek God. If we just think, “I want to be closer to God, I want to feel His spirit”, but we don’t do anything about it, we will be in the same spot without ever growing. But if we are actively and intentionally looking for wisdom and seeking His will. He promises that we WILL find Him! We are blessed in this country to have such freedom in doing so. We can attend a worship service or even watch a sermon online. We have access to the Bible…hardback, paperback, online, New International Version, King James Version, New Living Translation… We have Christian friends and mentors. God has really given us many ways in which to learn more and gain more wisdom. It is up to us to make the most of what he has given us. Like the parable of the talents… Okay read one more thing and then I’ll wrap up!:

Matthew 25:14-30

-

God gives each of us a gift…a talent. For some that is singing or playing an instrument… to others it is leadership or kindness. It is up to us what we do with that gift. Will we have that gift, and never use it, or will we make the most of that gift and experience how God wants to use that gift in out lives?

Okay so I just want to ask a few questions… Think about these questions… like literally, take time and focus directly on them. And as you think about them, ask yourself how your response and thoughts will shape how you live out your day. Pray that God will reveal something in your life that you maybe hadn't considered before. Pause between each question…really think about them! I know how easy it is to read something without really applying myself, without really trying or wanting to learn anything… I mean that was my life in high school... b:ut I hope that you can lay aside distractions and do a little digging into your thoughts and heart on these… Okay so here they are:

Am I doing everything I can to seek and find God in every situation in my life? (Really focus on this one, I know it is something I personally struggle with…don’t we all? This world offers a lot of distractions.) Think about particular situations and things going on in your life right now. What could you change?

Do I desire God above anything else in my life? What does that look like?

What types of things do I desire that I sometimes push their way up to the top?

My prayer:
Father, Please speak to my heart. Give me a stronger desire to seek you. As I begin to seek, I pray that you would reveal things in my life. Reveal destructive patterns in my life. Help me to let go of everything else. God, I want to run this race for you, I want you to truly be my one focus. Please continue to show me what that means. Help me change. I want to change and be closer to you more and more every day. You are an unending source of knowledge of wisdom and I want to take advantage of that! I want to use the talents and gifts that you have given me. Please help me to be aware of the opportunities that you place in front of me to do so. Mold me to your image. Thank you for your love-for your sacrifice and the freedom that brings me. I love you, In Jesus’ name, Amen!

This is a devotion that I wrote awhile back... but it has been good for me to re-read it and I figured it would be good to share on the blog as well! 

Where to start? This is always the first question I have when I begin to write anything. I want to make a first good impression to my readers. To get them hooked. But I've been learning that I can’t keep focused on making my intro perfect. In fact, this is true with most anything in life. In most circumstances you have to “just do it” as Nike would say.

I think it is the same in our relationship with Christ. As Christians we should strive to grow closer to our God. To learn more of His wisdom and to discover the truths He wants us to know. In a way, we already have our intro. We know He is our Savior, and we have accepted that gift. But where do we go from here? Of course going to church is important, but for so many of us, that becomes our only form of worship. God desires us to worship Him in every part of our lives.

There are a few ways we can have a growing relationship with God. Unlike this world’s way of thinking, our relationship with God is our ONLY form of true peace. The world tells us we can make our own peace. By yoga, meditation, drugs, sleep, diet…you get the picture. While some of things can definitely be relaxing and peaceful, without keeping God in the picture, there will still be a form of emptiness. It scares me to think that even as Christians, we forget how perfect the peace of God is. That throughout our days we aren't aware of His presence. It happens to all of us. It is my desire that in having a closer relationship with God, that He will be our peace, and that we can find rest from Him in every situation. That He will truly become the center of everything we do.

That brings me to the different ways that we have to connect with our Father. It really comes down to seeking Him. The Bible says “If you seek Him, He will be found.” (1 Chronicles 28:9) So it is rational to say that if we are looking for God in the situations we face on a day to day basis, we will find the peace of God, the love of God, the strength of God, the truth of God, and every other perfect thing our Father has to offer us.

The power of prayer is something that is talked about quite often in Christian settings. We know it is our way of talking to God and we have seen Him answer our prayers in ways we could never have even dreamed of. I think even prayer is something that we can take for granted though. We pray for some pretty specific things sometimes, and during specific times of trouble or of need. But it is such a great gift to realize that God knows our situation. During those times we don’t have to lay out a plan for Him, all we really need to do is go to Him. To pray for His will, to ask for His rest and for His help, and to listen. How do I listen? That is something only God can answer. Ask Him these things, ask Him how you can find rest, and ask Him to show you his will. Ask for wisdom and understanding. Give thanks.

The other way we have to connect with God is through the Bible. This is our only weapon of offense against the devil. Read Ephesians 6:10-18 (right now!:):) …even if you've already read it before). You’ll see that the armor of God is mostly defensive, but the sword of the Spirit is our only offensive weapon. It must be extremely powerful if that’s the only weapon we need to fight against Satan. It can be hard to feel motivated to read the Bible at times…to read anything for that matter. But fight against the flesh and dig into His word. It will become easier as you seek God. It will become less of a chore and more of a desire. Read verse 18 again. Pray in the Spirit on ALL occasions with ALL kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, BE ALERT and always keep on praying for all your brothers and sisters in Christ. This is somewhat of a paraphrase but it is definitely a verse to live by…there are many though, and hopefully you will find many more as you begin to dig more and more into God’s word. My hope is that these devotions will help me as well as my friends to grow and learn more about our amazing Father.

There is always more that we can learn-always more knowledge and more wisdom. I don’t know about you, but I never want to stop learning! I want all the tools I can to live a life that is pleasing to God. I don’t want to be ignorant. I want answers. I want confidence.

Philippians 3:12-16
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already attained.

Before you read on farther…take a minute to really think about those verses. Reread them. If you want to, write down what those verses say and mean to you. Pray that God reveals something through those verses.

-

I learned in my college study skills class that reading something and then writing or saying it aloud in your own words really helps your mind to process the information and keep it in your memory. So I would encourage you to do that.

Here is what those verses mean to me:
I am not perfect. I haven’t learned everything there is to know…but want to keep learning as much as I can. There is no use dwelling on my past and how fun things used to be…because God has an exciting future planned out for me. I want to focus my attention toward and strive to make the most of every day and fulfilling His plan in my life. His prize is better than any earthly treasure. God has given us this knowledge… and because we are mature, let’s not forget where our focus should be. If we keep Him at the center of our lives, he will make things clear to us. But we have to live out what we know. We have to live out the knowledge that He has given us.

Read Matthew 7: 7-8.

-

When we want to be closer to God… He is there. We just have to seek Him. Think about the word seek. I think of it like searching…when you are searching for something…you are actively moving around looking behind and under things. You aren’t sitting on a couch hoping that it just appears right in front of you. We must seek God. If we just think, “I want to be closer to God, I want to feel His spirit”, but we don’t do anything about it, we will be in the same spot without ever growing. But if we are actively and intentionally looking for wisdom and seeking His will. He promises that we WILL find Him! We are blessed in this country to have such freedom in doing so. We can attend a worship service or even watch a sermon online. We have access to the Bible…hardback, paperback, online, New International Version, King James Version, New Living Translation… We have Christian friends and mentors. God has really given us many ways in which to learn more and gain more wisdom. It is up to us to make the most of what he has given us. Like the parable of the talents… Okay read one more thing and then I’ll wrap up!:

Matthew 25:14-30

-

God gives each of us a gift…a talent. For some that is singing or playing an instrument… to others it is leadership or kindness. It is up to us what we do with that gift. Will we have that gift, and never use it, or will we make the most of that gift and experience how God wants to use that gift in out lives?

Okay so I just want to ask a few questions… Think about these questions… like literally, take time and focus directly on them. And as you think about them, ask yourself how your response and thoughts will shape how you live out your day. Pray that God will reveal something in your life that you maybe hadn't considered before. Pause between each question…really think about them! I know how easy it is to read something without really applying myself, without really trying or wanting to learn anything… I mean that was my life in high school... b:ut I hope that you can lay aside distractions and do a little digging into your thoughts and heart on these… Okay so here they are:

Am I doing everything I can to seek and find God in every situation in my life? (Really focus on this one, I know it is something I personally struggle with…don’t we all? This world offers a lot of distractions.) Think about particular situations and things going on in your life right now. What could you change?

Do I desire God above anything else in my life? What does that look like?

What types of things do I desire that I sometimes push their way up to the top?

My prayer:
Father, Please speak to my heart. Give me a stronger desire to seek you. As I begin to seek, I pray that you would reveal things in my life. Reveal destructive patterns in my life. Help me to let go of everything else. God, I want to run this race for you, I want you to truly be my one focus. Please continue to show me what that means. Help me change. I want to change and be closer to you more and more every day. You are an unending source of knowledge of wisdom and I want to take advantage of that! I want to use the talents and gifts that you have given me. Please help me to be aware of the opportunities that you place in front of me to do so. Mold me to your image. Thank you for your love-for your sacrifice and the freedom that brings me. I love you, In Jesus’ name, Amen!