| Topic: |
Religions > Bible |
| User: |
"Carl" |
| Date: |
01 Jul 2007 05:47:19 PM |
| Object: |
Those Who Seek The Lord Lack No Good Thing |
For we Christians it is always desirable to seek the Lord and we are
encouraged in scripture to do so in our lives. We also know that He is with
us at all times and loves us with a perfect infinite love. Charles Stanley
encourages Christians to always seek the Lord in the following article. I
hope you'll take the time to read it.
May God bless,
Carl
my website -- http://www.nettally.com/saints/
my blog -- http://www.anniemayhem.com/cgi-bin/wordpress/
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Those Who Seek The Lord Lack No Good Thing
by Charles F. Stanley
I have my grandfather's old beatup leather Bible in my office at In Touch.
There's something very special about that book. Whenever I pick it up, I am
reminded of somebody God used to plant in my heart the most wonderful
lifetime lessons.
Though I didn't see my grandfather often, he made a profound impact on my
thinking and spiritual growth. In one of our rare but cherished visits, he
explained how God had worked in his own life. And so I began to ask, "Lord,
if You will work in my granddad's life that way, what are You willing to do
in my life?" I was only 17 years old at the time and didn't fully understand
the concept, but that conversation instilled within my heart the desire to
seek God.
The expression "seeking God" refers to the desire to know Him-the earnest
hungering and thirsting for an intimate relationship with our Creator. It
involves an awesome sense of growing oneness with Him, where Jesus Christ is
no longer just our distant Savior and Lord but an intimate friend who walks
with us moment by moment and day by day.
In Matthew 12:39, Jesus called His generation "evil and adulterous" because
they sought signs and wonders instead of the Lord Himself. We live in a
similar spiritual climate, where people want displays of divine power but
are content to have nothing more than a superficial relationship with Jesus.
They are satisfied to be saved, attend church, and have a few prayer
requests answered; however, they prefer not to delve any deeper or pursue
knowing their Savior in a more significant way.
Ways to seek God
The rewards of pursuing God are great-Scripture tells us that "they who seek
the LORD shall not be in want of any good thing" (Psalm 34:10). But we will
not accidentally drift into a meaningful relationship with Him; the key to
developing intimacy with God is to act purposefully with that end in mind.
As 1 Chronicles 22:19 says, "Now set your heart and your soul to seek the
LORD your God." How, then, can we diligently pursue knowing Him better?
Scripture-The Bible is a written description of God's attributes and the way
He operates. Many Christians read a passage or two each morning, but seeking
the Lord requires more than that. As you open the Word of God, say to Him,
"I want to know You better. Speak to me, Lord, and show me the truth about
Yourself." You can be certain that "Show me the truth" is one prayer God
will always answer.
When you are in love with somebody, you long to build a relationship to get
to know him or her better. As genuine intimacy takes place, barriers come
down and ignorance is replaced by knowledge on a deeper level than the
physical or the emotional-it is a connection with that person's spirit. In a
similar way, if you want to seek God, then open Scripture with the purpose
of discovering answers to these questions: Who is this God? Who is this
Christ? Who is this Holy Spirit living inside of me and expressing the life
of Jesus through my being?
Prayer-All of us have a prayer list. In fact, mine has hundreds of items,
but nothing on that list encompasses my ultimate goal in praying, which is
to know God better. A long time ago, I learned this truth from Oswald
Chambers' My Utmost for His Highest: The most important thing in my life is
not my service, winning people to Jesus, preaching sermons, or being a
pastor. The most important thing in my life is building my relationship with
Christ. So when you come to Him in prayer, say, "Lord, open my heart and
speak to me; show me Yourself, and help me to understand Your ways."
Worship-Don't come to church simply because it is Sunday. Instead, arrive
with a hungry heart and an attitude of "God, what do You want to say to me?
What do You want to accomplish in me and through me?" Come prepared to hear
from Him; have an open Bible, a notebook, and a pen so that you can record
what God reveals He is trying to do in your life. You will walk away with
truth that can vitally impact your future if you accept it and apply it.
I can't even imagine going to a service and just sitting back, thinking,
Wasn't that sermon wonderful? The purpose for church is not to entertain
you, but rather to allow God to impact your heart, change your life, and
make you more Christlike. This will start to happen when you purposefully
invite Him to speak to your heart.
Books-The great authors of the faith have many profound and helpful
insights, but they will be of no value unless you intentionally look for God
as you read. Have the mindset, Lord, I want to know You better. Show me
something new, or if there is anything about You that I should understand
but have missed, please reveal it. Every once in a while when I read a new
idea, I have to get on my knees and say, "God, how could I have been a
Christian this long and missed that?" But for all of us, it can take
repeated exposure before certain truths sink into our hearts.
Conversation-Be purposeful in discussions at home, at work, and with
friends. Don't allow your daily interactions to center only around sports,
politics, and news headlines. Get the conversation going about Jesus! I love
to come into a group of people and listen to the conversation, because I
always learn something. But small talk doesn't interest me; I want to
discuss things that will make a difference, either in somebody else's life
or in my own. So when you are with a group of friends, coworkers, or
relatives, have your spiritual "antenna" up-then you can discover something
new or discern when to interject a comment that points to the Savior.
Results of seeking the Lord Scripture tells us that when we make it our top
priority to know God, we can expect a number of benefits in addition to the
blessing of intimacy with Him:
1) We will not want for any good thing. Psalm 37:4 says that when we make
God the primary object of our affections and interest, He will give us the
desires of our heart. And as our omniscient Creator, the Lord knows us even
better than we know ourselves-He is well aware of our innermost longings,
some of which even we may not realize. What's more, as we seek Him, we learn
how He thinks, our thoughts begin to line up with His, and we want only what
He wants. In that way, the blessings God lovingly chooses for us will truly
satisfy our heart's desires.
2) We will experience success in life. Second Chronicles 31:20-21 gives us
the example of Hezekiah: "Every work which he began in the service of the
house of God in law and in commandment, seeking his God, he did with all his
heart and prospered." Similarly, the Lord told Joshua to follow the book of
the law so that he would prosper and succeed in all his undertakings.
(Joshua 1:7-8) The principle is that by meditating upon God's Word, we come
to understand His ways and His will, and our relationship with Him will
deepen. As we know God better, we will increasingly make right decisions,
which lead to success.
3) We will gain understanding. Proverbs 28:5 says, "Evil men do not
understand justice, but those who seek the LORD understand all things." An
evil heart is cloudy and impure, and it is home to a rebellious spirit. But
when we yearn to know God, our heart becomes clean, our mind becomes clear,
and our spirit becomes submissive-we will be able to discern what is morally
right and wrong and then obediently comply with God's directions.
4) We will know contentment. From his experience in the wilderness, David
knew what it meant to crave water; he used the image of thirsting in Psalm
63:1 to describe how eagerly he sought the Lord. In verse 5, he expresses
deep, genuine contentment: "My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness,
and my mouth offers praises with joyful lips."
There is a sense of deep satisfaction in the heart of a person who is
seeking the Lord.
Pursue Him now
The most exciting experience I know is to get on my face before God and to
fellowship with Him. Nothing else in the entire world will do for the human
heart what His presence will-no other thing in all of life will so satisfy
your spirit as being alone with the Lord Jesus Christ. That is what
contentment is all about. What does your heart yearn for? As you wake up in
the morning, what are you thinking about and wanting in life? Being able to
answer "Jesus Christ" is evidence that you are truly seeking the Lord. If
you want greater understanding and knowledge of God's will for your life,
don't wait. Whether you are 5 or 95, start learning now to seek, obey, and
follow Him. That is the path to success and true fulfillment.
.
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