December 25, 2024

I Stand In Awe

November 19, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

You are beautiful beyond description
Too marvelous for words
Too wonderful for comprehension
Like nothing ever seen or heard
And who can grasp Your infinite wisdom
And who can fathom the depths of Your love
You are beautiful beyond description
Majesty enthroned above

And I stand, I stand in awe of You
And I stand, I stand in awe of You
Holy God, to Whom all praise is due
I stand in awe of You

 The Acts Church Worship Team
written by Mark Altrogge

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Then you will call upon Me, and you will come and pray to Me,
and I will hear and heed you.
Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity]
and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:12 and 13

Recently, I have been RE-reminded of the importance and immense value of purposefully seeking our God. It should go without saying that it is such a deep need of our hearts to intentionally remove ourselves from our day-to-day surroundings (with the inherent distractions that come along with that) and quietly be in His presence.

There is no greater example (that I can recall) of someone who recognized the need and importance of seeking God and spending time in His presence than our Lord Jesus.  Throughout the Gospels, we read of many times when Jesus purposefully withdrew from His disciples, and from ministering to the needs of the people, and went to pray.  We see how valuable it was to Him to be alone with His Father, seeking Him, and spending time in His presence.

And in the morning, long before daylight,
He got up and went out to a deserted place, and there He prayed.
Mark 1:35

And after He had taken leave of them, He went off into the hills to pray.
Mark 6:46

But He Himself withdrew to the wilderness (desert) and prayed.
Luke 5:16

Now in those days it occurred that He went up into a mountain to pray,
and spent the whole night in prayer to God.
Luke 6:12

Within the context of each of these glimpses into Jesus’ life, we observe that He:

  • before even beginning His day, went and prayed
  • in the midst of trying circumstance, went to be alone with God in
  • preparation for important decisions, got alone with His Father and prayed
  • after much time ministering to people and teaching them, left and sought God and prayed

How much more do we need to emulate His heart in recognizing our great need to be alone with our heavenly Father, seeking Him, and praying?

Perhaps the most poignant example that Jesus left us is His time seeking His Father in prayer just prior to His betrayal and arrest in the garden of Gethsemane.

Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and He told His disciples, Sit down here while I go over yonder and pray. And taking with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, He began to show grief and distress of mind and was deeply depressed. Then He said to them, My soul is very sad and deeply grieved, so that I am almost dying of sorrow. Stay here and keep awake and keep watch with Me. And going a little farther, He threw Himself upon the ground on His face and prayed saying, My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will [not what I desire], but as You will and desire. And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and He said to Peter, What! Are you so utterly unable to stay awake and keep watch with Me for one hour? All of you must keep awake (give strict attention, be cautious and active) and watch and pray, that you may not come into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Again a second time He went away and prayed, My Father, if this cannot pass by unless I drink it, Your will be done. And again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were weighed down with sleep. So, leaving them again, He went away and prayed for the third time, using the same words.

Matthew 26:36-44

Words escape me to express how deeply I recognize my Lord’s awareness of His need of His Father at this incredibly stress-filled, sorrowful time! But my heart is convicted and reminded of my own need to do the same! If Jesus, the Perfect Man, who was totally without sin and always able to rise above any temptation, so needed this time seeking His Father…then I am without excuse to ever think I do not need the same…and much, much more!

How very blessed we are to know that this is God’s Will…that He desires us to seek Him…that He is always available to us…that our yearning hearts will always be welcomed into His presence. How very thankful we are to know that through His suffering, persecution, death and resurrection, Jesus—our Redeemer, our Savior, our Lord and Master—has broken down any barrier between us and Almighty God, and made it available for us to approach His Throne of grace!

But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were [so] far away,
through the blood of Christ have been brought near.
For He is [Himself] our peace (our bond of unity and harmony).
By abolishing in His [own crucified] flesh the enmity [caused by] the Law
with its decrees and ordinances [which He annulled]; that He from the two
might create in Himself one new man, so making peace.
And He came and preached the glad tidings of peace to you who were afar off
and [peace] to those who were near.
For it is through Him that we…now have an introduction (access) by one [Holy] Spirit
to the Father [so that we are able to approach Him].
Ephesians 2:13-18

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Keep seeking Him and enjoy your quiet time with your Lord!  Express your needs as well as the praise and adoration that is in your heart!  As you seek Him, He will be found…He promises!

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I Will Seek Your Face

March 4, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

I will seek Your face, O Lord
I will seek Your face, O Lord
I will seek Your face, O Lord
I will seek Your face, O Lord

Lord, how awesome is Your presence
Who can stand in Your light
Those who by Your grace and mercy
Are made holy in Your sight

I will dwell in Your presence
All the days of my life
There to gaze upon Your glory
And to worship only You

Written by Noel and Tricia Richards
Performed by Brentwood Studio Musicians

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I was reading a book, and the author put forth the following question…it’s a biggie…ready?

“…is there anything that draws you away
from your relationship with God,
or distracts you from serving Him?”

“Anything…?”  I don’t like to admit it…to you or even to myself, honestly.  But ‘yes’ is my answer.  How about you?  Please take a few moments, right now, and consider this question.  Perhaps ask God to reveal the truth to you.

As we consider that we allow circumstances and situations to distract us from the One Who we should be seeking, I am sure your heart is saddened as mine is.  Actually, way more than sad!  My heart is sorrowful.  But, rather than just be depressed, my next thought should be (is!) “What am I going to do about that!?!”  Our heavenly Father doesn’t want us remaining in our sorrowful state of mind…He wants us to mourn our sin (of course), to repent, and CHANGE. And then to live our lives to His honor and glory!

Even now,” declares the LORD,
“return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.”
Rend your heart and not your garments.
Return to the LORD your God,
for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love….
Joel 2:12 and 13

As we each experience daily, there is much to distract us from focusing on our relationship with our God. From the moment our eyes open each morning, it can be a struggle to maintain the right perspective—God first.  But we CAN rise above this challenge and choose where our hearts and minds go.  For me the impetus must be seeking Him above, before, and instead of anything else.  He comes first—before anything else.  And so I need to  intentionally and purposefully seek Him.

We have the joy and the privilege of having direct access to His throne of grace! At any time during the day (or night!) we can seek our heavenly Father—and enjoy quiet time alone with Him.  David wrote about his ‘quiet time’ in the following verse.  Does God hear us expressing our hearts to Him in the same way?

In the morning You hear my voice, O Lord;
In the morning I prepare [a prayer, a sacrifice] for You
And watch and wait [for You to speak to my heart].
Psalm 5:3

Now, of course, that time you spend alone with Your Lord—your quiet, devotional time—is certainly not the only time to pray! Actually, I think, being intentional…seeking Him first and foremost…prepares our hearts for the rest of our day to be filled with continual little prayers and petitions directed to our God.

Be encouraged! I am sure that you already seek Him throughout your day….  How often do we go along through our day accomplishing the normal even mundane tasks talking with our Father?  Or driving (yet again) to school to pickup your children; isn’t that a great time to pray?  Or waiting for them at dance/soccer/baseball practice or music lessons/cub scout meeting/awana time/_______ (you fill in the blank); yet another small amount of time that can be eked out of your day to pray and seek Him.

Paul wrote a number of times in his letters to the Christian believers about the importance of praying.  Listen to this encouragement:

Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season)
in the Spirit,with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty.
To that end keep alert and watch
with strong purpose and perseverance,
interceding in behalf of all the saints (God’s consecrated people).
Ephesians 6:18

Pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks;
for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:17 and 18

So we see by seeking God first and foremost, by being intentional to have a ‘quiet time’ early in our day, and seeking Him in our prayers and petitions, we will be better prepared to “pray at all times, and, keep alert and watch, and, pray without ceasing.”  We will be continually seeking Him throughout each day—thus carrying out His will!

Here is a great example of seeking Him:

Be earnest and unwearied and steadfast in your prayer [life],
Being [both] alert and intent in [your praying] with thanksgiving.
Colossians 4:2

Those are some very intentional words (earnest, unwearied, steadfast, alert, intent) used in that verse, yes?  Other versions use similar words: devote, persevere, continue….

Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything,
but in every circumstance and in everything,
by prayer and petition (definite requests),
with thanksgiving,
continue to make your wants known to God.
And God’s peace [shall be yours, that peace]
which transcends all understanding
shall garrison and mount guard
over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6 and 7

Keep seeking Him and enjoy your quiet time with your Lord! As you seek Him, He will be found…He promises!

Then you will call upon Me, and you will come
and pray to Me, and I will hear and heed you.
Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity]
and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:12 and 13

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Do Not Harbor Sin

January 22, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo
If I had cherished sin in my heart the Lord would not have listened.
Psalm 66:18

Those who take pleasure in unrighteousness have no hope of answered prayer when they call on God. God wants us separated from sin, only then will he respond to us as a Father to a son.  2 Corinthians 6:14 says “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?”

Sin comes to us in different forms. One way of sinning is by being disobedient to God. When we live in disobedience we become children of darkness; therefore there is no way the light of God can fellowship with the darkness.

Sin separates us from God and it is not the will of God that we should live sinful lives. God tried to make it simple by simply saying “If you confess your sins, I am faithful and just to forgive you.”  What is it that we do instead? We confess today yet we do again tomorrow and take advantage of His grace and mercy to us.

I have learnt in life that most of the prayers we pray are unanswered not because we don’t know how to pray or that it is not time yet but it is because we harbor sin and God cannot answer us. In Jeremiah 29: 12-13, God is saying “Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.”

Everything starts from the heart. And therefore we have to take care of what is in it. Remember in Proverbs it is written, “Above all things guard your heart for it the wellbeing of your life” (4:23) meaning out of it there are springs of life or death. As long as you are in the right standing with God your heart will spring forth life; if vice versa, then doom.

Therefore I beseech you, my sisters, that we should let God direct our path…letting Him be our light so that we see where we are going. He should be our Salvation and our Strength. Let us hide the Word of the Lord in our hearts so that we do not sin against God. God loves us and He wants us to fully obey him—so therefore, let us not harbor sin.

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Lord, I thank You and bless You for all who You are and what You have done in our lives. I pray, Lord, for Your continued grace for us all. May the Holy Spirit be with us and guide us as we meditate on this Word further. We thank You for Your goodness and mercy that is following us all the days of our lives. In Jesus’ name we have prayed. AMEN!

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With All Our Heart

January 10, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

 

Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.
And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:12 and 13

I feel like I am always looking for something.  I lose something, my kids lose something, my husband needs something, or I need to find a report at work; whatever it may be, I feel like I’m always looking.

There are a few ways we can search for things in our lives:

  1. Casually looking—we wonder where something might be but we will be okay if we find it or if we don’t find it.
  2. Assign the task to someone else, maybe our husband or our kids.
  3. We look passionately, and almost frantically, for something like our keys (that we can’t find right before a doctor’s appointment or before a big meeting).

The interesting thing is this is also how we seek God at different times in our lives.

  1. Casually looking—we wonder where something might be but, we will be okay if we find it or if we don’t find it. When things are good, when we are busy, when the phone is ringing, our kids are calling from the other room, your husband needs something, the tv show is calling…. I know how hard it is to have a busy life; some things have to go by the wayside and fall into this casual category. I was guilty of this, and I was gently reminded that there are things that we can casually search for, but Christ is not one of them.
  2. Assign the task to someone else, maybe our husband or our kids. I think it is a great thing to listen to inspiring things on the radio, or watch tv shows that touch our heart mind and soul, but we need more than this. We need to take the time to read His Word and apply it to our daily lives. In addition to someone bringing the Word to us, we need to bring ourselves to the Word.
  3. We look passionately, and almost frantically, for something like our keys that we can’t find (right before a doctor’s appointment or before a big meeting). This way of looking might be used when things are bad, or when we’re facing a crisis; it might be used as a New Year’s resolution; and prayerfully we use this way of looking into our everyday walk of life. We need to look (according to Jeremiah 29: 12-13) with all our heart.

He commands us to seek Him and search for Him with all of our heart. I know that the way I seek Him needed some serious reevaluating; I needed to change how I searched for Him. It was too casual, it was based on convenience and free time, instead of daily and with intention. This week I am going to intentionally focus on this phrase “with all my heart;” will you join me? Write it…read it…live it.

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Let’s pray: Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for Your gentleness, even when we are seeking You casually You continue to surround us with Your love. Lord I pray that we intentionally strive to seek You daily with all our heart; I know that we will see a change in our lives and I know we will draw closer to You.  In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

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Interested in joining us for our next Online Bible Study that starts on January 13, 2014?   Click HERE for more details!

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With All Our Hearts

January 9, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

Then, you will call upon Me
and come and pray to Me, and I will hear you.
You will seek Me and find Me,
when you seek Me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:12-13

Would you go to the swimming pool to swim and only put your big toe in the water? Would you give a bracelet as a birthday gift and only put part of the bracelet in the box? Would you love someone only on Mondays?

It would be equally silly (and quite sad, I might add) to not seek God with all your heart. Take a moment to think of your relationship with God. We are to come to Him and pray and seek Him with all of our heart. To go back to the three analogies: dive into that pool with all your heart—totally submerging yourself to seek Him!!! As a gift, think of giving your heart whole-heartedly to God! And with your time, seek Him every day of the week! (That’s not bits and pieces of our time here and there like on special occasions, holidays, and emergencies! If you go to Him surrendered with all your heart, there’s not a day that comes and goes when your relationship with Him does not matter! Seek Him whole-heartedly!)

But even though we come to Him often, let’s always be in awe of the fact that the great God of the universe loves us and is willing to listen, care, and respond to our needs just like He did with the people in the Book of Jeremiah. Let’s not ever get over the fact that He can save us, restore us, forgive us, guide us, strengthen us, and help us. Let’s call to God, come to God, pray to God—knowing and believing that He will hear us if we seek Him with all of our heart. If we do, we will find Him (verse 14)!
Jesus doesn’t want partial heart commitments.

Look at this excerpt from the Scriptures:
But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees,
they gathered together. And one of them, a lawyer asked him a question to test him.
‘Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?’
And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind. Matthew 22:34-37

It’s always the heart condition and amount of heart-surrender that matters to God! We are to give Him our all! He alone to the full extent knows who seeks Him with all their heart and who does not.

But if we could see it, I wonder what we would see. My imagination takes me to a place of wondering. Join me for a minute….
Imagine if all people wore a necklace that had a representation of a 5-inch heart that served as a gauge dangling from it. Imagine that the hearts would be completely shaded in red for those who seek God with all their heart. Now here’s the hard part: As we moved about our lives at the grocery store, at church, at school, or work, and within our families and friends…I wonder how many dangling hearts would be sadly empty, only partially-shaded, or completely shaded red? How much of your heart and mine would be shaded red when we look into the mirror?…How does this hit you?

If this imagination exercise is here to convict any or all of us, let the conviction take us to a place in our heart to strive to live (through the power of the Holy Spirit ) “a completely, red-shaded heart for the Lord” and also desiring and praying for the same for others! Let’s all seek Him with our whole hearts!

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Dear Lord, Let us always seek You and find You because we come seeking You with all our heart. Wherever each of us is in our relationship with You, let it grow even more. Thank You for being our Rescuer, Restorer, Deliverer, and Comforter. We give You all praise and glory, and we thank You for being a faithful God Who does not change, waiver, or hide from us. Let our hearts be drawn to You daily and completely! In Jesus’ precious Name I pray. Amen.

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Interested in joining us for our next Online Bible Study that starts on January 13, 2014?   Click HERE for more details!

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Wholeheartedly

January 8, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

 

In those days when you pray, I will listen.
If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.
Jeremiah 29:12-13 NLT

I want to seek the Lord wholeheartedly. I’ve uttered these words plenty of times in my almost 4 year journey with the Lord. I’ve also assumed the fetal position and/or thrown a tantrum at some of God’s responses to my bold statement—after all, wholeheartedly is much easier to say than to do.

There are areas of my life I feel comfortable with God having control over…and some that I do not. For instance—my finances. I know a lot of what the Bible says about finances and, yet, I’ve hesitated when it comes to submitting to the Lord in this area.

Whenever we seek Him the Bible says,

The Lord is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him.
Lamentations 3:25

How good?

Daniel sought the Lord and, in doing so, defied the decree of the king (Daniel 6:1-28). And he was tossed into the lion’s den for it—but he was saved. The Lord is good to those who search for Him.

Joseph sought the Lord and, in doing so, was betrayed by his brothers, promoted in slavery, set up by his master’s wife, promoted in jail, forgotten about—and ultimately—promoted in the kingdom of Egypt. The Lord is good to those who search for Him.

The bleeding women suffered many years, was deemed unclean and unworthy of social contact, made an outcast. The Lord sees and heals, He is good to, those who search for Him.

Father Abraham was given a promise from God Almighty and, though the fulfillment of this promise seemed physically impossible, the Lord delivered and (then shockingly) asked Abraham to offer up the manifestation (his precious son, Isaac) of that very promise. The Lord provides and blesses, He is good to, those who seek him wholeheartedly.

Wholeheartedly means to hold back nothing or be sincere. As a living sacrifice, I must daily commit to a wholehearted relationship with the Almighty. I stumble, I fall, but I always get back up. One of my favorite verses says it like this, “The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again. But one disaster is enough to overthrow the wicked” (Proverbs 24:16). Wholeheartedly is not about perfection. No, wholeheartedly is about a heart position. It’s a choice we can make at any millisecond of the day, after any mistake (killing off Christians), doubt (when walking on water) or even outright denial of Jesus (three times).

And as always with our loving God, His way has its perks.

*  *   *   *  *   

Lord, I want my life to be one of wholehearted devotion to You and You alone. Everything (every idol) I have held on to and given pieces of my heart to, I ask that You show me these areas and then give me Your truth so that I may submit these areas to You. And when I want to squirm, Lord, give me the courage to stand strong instead! In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

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Interested in joining us for our next Online Bible Study that starts on January 13, 2014?   Click HERE for more details!

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Seek Him First

January 7, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

 

Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me
and I will listen to you.
You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:12-13

Strategic timing is often involved in the fulfilment of Gods promises. God fulfils His Word and His promises both in relation to the fullness of His redemptive purpose and in response to His faithful peoples’ earnest prayers.

Jeremiah prophesied that at the end of the seventy year captivity a new ‘fullness of time’ would occur. God would then move within a holy remnant so that they would seek Him in prayer with all their hearts. And there God would listen, answer from heaven, and fulfill His promises of restoration.

Note two principles:

  • When God desires to do great things for His people, He moves His people to great praying; and,
  • The timing of God’s answers to their prayers is often linked to God’s purposes for His people as a whole

 The lions may grow weak and hungry
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

Psalm 34:10

Note that the promises in this psalm are conditional and reserved only for those who seek the Lord. God promises to deliver us from fear, save us from trouble, send angels to encamp around us, supply our needs, give us abundant life, hear our prayers, comfort us with His presence and redeem us – but only if we seek the Lord.

Ask and it will be given unto you,
seek and you will find
knock and the door will be opened.
Matthew 7:7

When we are seeking, it implies earnest petitioning along with obedience to God’s Will. See that doors and gates are opening for those that are seeking the Lord diligently. I therefore request you, my sisters, to seek the Lord at all times. For it also says, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and its righteous and all the things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33).  It is only when we seek the Lord that all things shall be added unto us. The doors to prosperity, to good health, to divine protection, etc. will be added unto us. All the prophetic messages we heard on New Years Day concerning 2014 will be fulfilled when we diligently seek the Lord.  Let us seek the Lord not in vain. Let us seek Him with all our hearts.

I did not speak in secret, in a land of darkness;
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain.’
I the Lord speak the truth; I declare what is right.
Isaiah 45:19

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Father, we come before You for we know there is no one who is like unto Thee and You alone we seek for we know we can’t go wrong and all these things will be added unto us. Create in us a steadfast spirit, Lord, in Jesus’ name we have prayed. Amen.

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Interested in joining us for our next Online Bible Study that starts on January 13, 2014?   Click HERE for more details!

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Seeking Him

January 6, 2014 by
SeekingHimLogo

Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will hear you.
You will seek Me and find Me, when you seek Me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:12-13 ESV

Have you ever had those times where all you do is seek God with all of your heart?  I have—so many times.  He created us to seek a relationship with Him.  When we walk away He is sad…like a lover we have left behind; yet we are always pulled back toward Him.

As the New Year begins, we want to start with a clean slate and clean hearts; yet we don’t know how or we lose our way. By making that commitment to seek out His Word we will be able to.

But without faith it is impossible to please Him:
for he that cometh to God must believe that He is,
and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.
Hebrews 11:6 KJV

I do not make New Year’s resolutions because I often do not keep them.  But what I do seek to do is to make a lifestyle change.  Something I want to have in my life day to day.  Striving for the relationship I need to have with God is my goal every day. Distraction comes in many faces.  Some seem harmless, some are just very harmful. Pray and ask God to reveal to you what your distractions are, and choose to eliminate them from your life. It may be very hard at first but you will be rewarded with a new insight into the heart of our Father.

One of the things we have experienced in the Marin household is having my mother-in-law come to live with us. She is such a joy to have around! It is just difficult for her to adjust to living here without her husband of 55 years. Plus with 2013 being the mildest summer and the winter of 2014 being the coldest in a while is not helping her either. (She moved from Florida to Tennessee). We are a busy household. Between work and exercising to keep healthy, we are not home with her a lot. She has her room, her TV, music and movies. She also sews, knits beautiful scarves, and helps us wherever she can.

Her faith has also been tested. She was angry with God for a while. Through the Holy Spirit, He is showing her why Carlos needed to go home to Him. We love her and try to keep her busy with little projects.  Our daughter,  Nikki, and I will take her out shopping, to hair appointments, and whatever else we can do to entertain her. By faith and by seeking Him, she is settling into a routine. One that I hope is satisfying and that will allow her to grow in her walk with God.  We will continue to find ways to entertain each other.  As long as we are truthful we will be able to have fun along our journey.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your love and Your mercy.  Thank You for giving us the ability to minister to others and to be ministered to.  Help us seek You more and to have the faith we need to love Your people as You do.  In Jesus’ precious name.  Amen.

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Interested in joining us for our next Online Bible Study that starts on January 13, 2014?   Click HERE for more details!

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You Are My Hiding Place

November 8, 2013 by

SeekingHimLogo

You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble;
You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.
Psalm 32:7

Sometimes we find ourselves in the place where we want to hide…to be in a secret spot…away from trouble and strife. At those times, it is best not to run and isolate; and try to be alone. It is best to seek our God.

Then you will call upon Me, and you will come and pray to Me,
and I will hear and heed you.
Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity]
and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:12 and 13

To know God’s promises brings such peace and comfort to our minds, does it not? Here we read of His particular promise to hear when we call and His promise to be found when we seek Him. His promise to us (to me and you!) is so simple! Listen…

my part: call upon Him…seek Him with my whole heart
His part: He will hear and heed…He will be found

The psalmist surely understood these promises! David was chased, hunted down by Saul and his army. He had to hide in caves and amongst the rocks on the cliffs. He was all alone during most of this time…alone—except for the abiding Presence of his God! David knew that his God would hide him.

For in the day of trouble He will hide me in His shelter;
in the secret place of His tent will He hide me;
He will set me high upon a rock.
Psalm 27:5

For David this was literally true. For us, however, most of our ‘hiding’ is not out in the wilderness. Our hiding is in plain sight—we hide our hearts, our feelings, our thoughts. But we can turn to the One Who loves us so and seek Him.  And when we do, He will be found.  And He will hide us in His shelter.

Think back…maybe you don’t need to go too far into your memories…to a time when you called out to your heavenly Father and sought Him with all your heart. When, perhaps, you were going through a situation and you needed His protection over your heart. When He heard you…and was found by you…and He hid you (your feelings, your thoughts, your heart). How did you feel then? Did you have that “…peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, <which> will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus?” (Philippians 4:7) I trust you did!

And so I encourage you, my friends, cling to His promises and purposefully take a stand on them!  He will hide you!  Trust Him knowing that,

I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living!
Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!
Psalms 27:13 and 14

* * * * *

Lord, thank You for Your promises!  thank You for Your love!  thank You for the joy of knowing You will hide us!  thank You for the peace we have that is beyond our ablity to understand…but we do trust You and we do believe!!!  thank You in Jesus’ name.  amen.

Filed Under: Seeking Him Daily Devotional Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Esther – Chapter 7:1-2

October 14, 2013 by

Here in Esther: The Beauty of Courageous Submission, Mrs. Schacht asks us the following question…it is a biggie…ready?

“…is there anything that draws you away
from your relationship with God,
or distracts you from serving Him?”

“Anything.”  I don’t like to admit it…to you or even to myself, honestly.  But ‘yes’ is my answer.  How about you?  Please take a few moments, right now, and consider this question.  Perhaps ask God to reveal this to you.

As we consider that we allow circumstances and situations to distract us from the One Who we should be seeking, I am sure your heart is saddened as mine is.  Actually,…no…not saddened!  My heart is sorrowful.  But, rather than just be depressed, my next thought should be/is “What am I going to do about that!?!”  Our heavenly Father doesn’t want us to remain in our sorrowful state of mind…He wants us to mourn our sin (of course), repent and CHANGE.  And then to live our lives to His honor and glory!

As we each experience daily, there is much to distract us from focusing on our relationship with our God.  From the moment our eyes open each morning, it can be a struggle to maintain the right perspective—God first.  But we CAN rise above this challenge and choose where our hearts and minds go.  For me the impetus must be to seek Him above, before, and instead of anything else.  He comes first before anything else.  And so I need to purposefully, willfully seek Him.

We have such joy and privilege of having direct access to His throne of grace!  At any time during the day (or night!) we can seek our heavenly Father—and enjoy quiet time alone with Him.  David wrote about his ‘quiet time’ in the following verse.  Does God hear you expressing your heart to Him in the same way?

In the morning You hear my voice, O Lord;
In the morning I prepare [a prayer, a sacrifice] for You
And watch and wait [for You to speak to my heart].
Psalm 5:3

Now, of course, that time you spend alone with Your Lord—your quiet, devotional time—is certainly not the only time to pray! Actually, I think, being intentional…seeking Him first and foremost…our hearts are prepared so that the rest of our day is filled with continual little prayers and petitions directed to our God.

Be encouraged!  I am sure that you already seek Him throughout your day…. How often do we go along through our day accomplishing the normal even mundane tasks talking with our Father?  Or driving (yet again) to school to pickup your children; isn’t that a great time to pray?  Or waiting for them at dance/soccer/baseball practice or music lessons/cub scout meeting/Awana time/_______ (you fill in the blank); yet another small amount of time that can be eked out of our day to pray and seek Him.

Paul wrote a number of times in his letters to the Christian believers about the importance of praying.  Listen to this encouragement:

Eph6_18

Pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:17-18

So we see by seeking God first and foremost, by being intentional to have a ‘quiet time’ early in our day, by seeking Him in our prayers and petitions, we will be better prepared to pray at all times, and, keep alert and watch, and, pray without ceasing.  We will be continually seeking Him throughout each day—thus carrying out His will!

Here is a great example of seeking Him:

Be earnest and unwearied and steadfast in your prayer [life],
Being [both] alert and intent in [your praying] with thanksgiving.
Colossians 4:2

Those are some very intentional words used at the beginning of that verse, yes? Other versions use similar words such as devote, persevere, continue….

Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything,
but in every circumstance and in everything,
by prayer and petition,
with thanksgiving,
continue to make your wants known to God.
And God’s peace [shall be yours, that peace]
which transcends all understanding
shall garrison and mount guard
over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7

“In every circumstance and in everything by prayer and petition…with thanksgiving” …that is how we make sure we are seeking Him in spite of the myriad of distractions in our lives.  Keep seeking Him and enjoy your quiet time with your Lord!  As you seek Him, He will be found…He promises!

Then you will call upon Me, and you will come and pray to Me,
and I will hear and heed you.
Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity]
and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.

Jeremiah 29:12,13

* * * * *

Let’s Pray:

Lord, You know our desire to seek You!   We need Your help, Lord, in everything…even in turning from distraction and seeking You!  We have Your promise that if we ask anything according to Your will, You hear us.  And since we know that You hear us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of You (1 John 5:14, 15).  Thank You, Lord!  We know that You will answer our heart’s cry as we are seeking You with all our heart!

Amen!

Filed Under: Women's Ministry Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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