I’m sure I’m not the only one who has sensed a dark cloud over America this year and the state of the world we live in. Political violence, natural disasters, and senseless wars have become the norm in this fallen world that has turned from the Light. It certainly appears the world we live in is only getting worse and moving further away from the God who created it (Genesis 1:1-30).
Since the pandemic, it seems like death is in the air, and there is no hope left for the world. People are looking for answers and solutions to the chaos that has become our new reality. Unfortunately, many people are looking in the wrong places to deliver them: politics, finances, earthly power, and greatness, or crazy conspiracy theories.
Growing up in the church, I remember learning about a God shaped hole in each of us (Job 5:9, Ecclesiastes 1:13; 3:11). Our God created us with the longing in our hearts and souls. It is perfectly normal and expected for people to long for more in life.
However, there is a caveat, the Bible also warns us that thanks to sin, our hearts are evil and cannot be trusted, Genesis 6:5, Ecclesiastes 9:3, Jeremiah 17:9, Matthew 13:15. That’s why we must all seek God and His will with our entire heart and being (Deuteronomy 4:29, 2 Chronicles 7:14, Psalm 119:10, Jeremiah 29:8-11).
Seeking is something we all do at some point in our lives. Seeking is defined as, “To sort or the search for information, or something of value: to try to discover.” The desire to understand is a natural curiosity God placed in each of us.
Unfortunately, our sinful nature distorts our hearts’ natural longing for God because of the fall; it wants temporary or harmful things. We can even fill our hearts with good things, which makes them idols when we think that’s God.
When I was younger, I walked away from the Christian faith and filled that longing with temporary happiness in the pleasures of this world. Amazingly, I was convicted and called by my Heavenly Father and tried to break free from my selfish ways.
However, I sought God out through believing different faiths for a season, until God humbled me through my accident. After my accident, I returned back to the Christian faith and entered a covenant relationship with the God God of Abraham, Jacob, and Isaac.
My covenant is with the Judeo-Christian God and His ways. A covenant is a written agreement between two or more parties, especially for the performance of some action. I learned quickly to discern between God’s voice, the devil’s temptations, and the selfish wants of my corrupt heart because I surrender completely.
When you enter a covenant, you consistently long for and seek out who you are in covenant with, just like a human marriage. Entering a covenant relationship with God isn’t a one-time decision; it is a daily denial of ourselves and putting His will before our own.
It’s a daily and minute-by-minute seeking of God’s will and purpose for every aspect of our lives, from vocation to pleasure. I have had to learn the hardway to seek God’s will and everything over my will.
I have learned to put boundaries in my life to protect my covenants and guard my heart (Proverbs 4: 23). Sometimes, we must guard our hearts from our own evil desires for things that are good.
As a believer, it is our will and duty to only seek and do God’s will (Matthew 6:9-13, 33). Both the Jewish and Christian faiths command us to LOVE God with all of our heart and the entirety of our lives (Deuteronomy 6:5-9, Numbers 15:37-41, Matthew 22:37-41).
We love God with all of our hearts, our hearts’ desire is to do His will above our selfish wants. As an old pastor once said, “I would rather be in hell and be in God’s will, then to be in heaven and out of God’s will, because being out of God’s will would be hell for me.”
Seeking God’s will doesn’t mean we are seeking what we want from God; it means we are seeking what He wants from and for us. What are you seeking?
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