10/24/2019
Are you seeking God right now? Perhaps you have known Him, but due to some disappointment you have wandered away into the desert and don’t know how to find Him again, or then again you may have never known Him, and only now realize that something is missing in your life and you are looking for the very first time. There are times in every life when we feel separated from God, and we just can’t seem to find Him; we feel alone, lost, and desperately in need of Him. Is this you right now?
“that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for "'In him we live and move and have our being'; as even some of your own poets have said, "'For we are indeed his offspring.'”
Acts 17:27-28 ESV
Being lost doesn’t necessarily mean that we are a long way from salvation. We have all read a book, or watched a movie, where the leading character is desperately lost in a harsh wilderness, and in the final pages, or scene, collapses in either a faint, or death, having given up hope. Then, suddenly, the author reveals to us by some literary means, or the filmmaker shows us by pulling the camera back, that they are just over a sand dune from a bustling oasis, or separated by a few feet of vegetation from a warm and inviting cabin. When these stories end there is, more often than not, someone who is just about to discover them... to rescue them. Yet in a few instances they have given up hope too soon, and tragically die within easy reach of rescue. Our search for God, and Jesus Christ, can end this way too, but it doesn’t have to because even while we are seeking and shouting for God... He is calling back to us.
“"Thus says the Lord who made the earth, the Lord who formed it to establish it—the Lord is his name: Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.”
Jeremiah 33:2-3 ESV
Desperation is a state of mind, and so is abandonment, and hopelessness. In your search for God you might feel alone, but you are not. God is there if you will only see Him, and there are so many others, often unknown to you, who are in daily prayer for your salvation. Caring Christians all over the world are interceding for you through prayer. Let’s read in this verse from Psalms, where the psalmist pleads to God for your discovery, and for you to find and rejoice in Him...
“But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation say continually, "Great is the Lord!"”
Psalms 40:16 ESV
When we feel like no one loves us we are in a very lonely place. Some pretend that this doesn’t bother them, but we see signs that it does. People who throw themselves into their work so that there is no time left to think about the more intimate loss of relationship, or those who try substituting the love they don’t have with fame, and shallow praise, or notoriety. In these cases they can be tempted to stop looking for God, and we refer to this as “selling one’s soul to the devil.” But God never stops loving them, and continues to call for them to come home...
“For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.' And they began to celebrate.”
Luke 15:24 ESV
So are you seeking for that something which is missing in your life? Well it is just on the other side of the door you are standing in front of. Can you hear the knocking? Are you bold enough to open it? Are you ready to enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ who will lead you to what has been missing in your life... the love of God?
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”
Revelation 3:20 ESV
Or maybe you are someone who has wandered away from God because He didn’t respond in a way you wanted Him to. Or then again, you might be blaming Him for a hurt you feel because you can’t see His will in a situation; perhaps He took a loved one and you don’t understand why, and you are bitter and angry because of it. Now is the time to fall back into His arms. He has loved you all along, and has been waiting for you to realize this. He will renew you, and reestablish the relationship with you that you felt was lost...
“He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”
Isaiah 40:29-31 ESV
Pray:
Father, thank you for answering my call in the wilderness, and leading me by your voice into relationship with you. Thank you for your Son Jesus who stands just beyond the door of my doubt, and disbelief, knocking. Help me to overcome my disbelief, and lift the fog of doubt that clouds my faith, so that I will be bold enough to open the door, and let Jesus into my life. When I am lost Father, stand on the road and watch for me. Wave to me when I approach, and open your arms to welcome me home when I return. Strengthen my faith Lord, so that no mountain, no forest, and nary a river can separate me from you. Renew my hope and resolve Holy Father, so that I will not collapse just beyond sight of you. Send your angels to find and strengthen me, and to lift me up on the wings of eagles as I approach your comfort and care. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my God in whose arms I fall, and in whom I trust my life, my love, and my faith. Merciful are you who calls out to me, a sinner, and makes a way for me by the life, death, and resurrection of your Son Jesus. All glory is yours Father, as it pours forth with the mighty flow of grace you established through Jesus. Praised be your name now, and forevermore.
“But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him.”
John 4:23 ESV
Rich Forbes