JEREMIAH 29:12-13 – 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.
THEME OF THE DAY. HOW WOULD GOD HAVE US SEEK HIM? Today’s scripture is a familiar text to most Christians. It is a great promise from our God to fulfill the purpose of our creation and our re-created purpose in our salvation – to know God, enjoy Him, and be satisfied in Him. All those statements and more are contained in the words “find me” for when we “find” God, we discover everything we will ever need now and forever to satisfy our yearnings for meaning, companionship, and contentment. Yet, these “findings” are not simply given to us by God. There is a personal responsibility, even condition, for us to find Him. Is this a promise? Yes, but like many promises of God to His people, there are conditions to meet.
As we read the verse, it isn’t difficult to observe what means God is identifying for us to find Him. It is prayer. The language “call upon me” and even the words “pray to me” and “I will hear you” are words of communion with God, of prayer. This leads to some application for us in the seeking of God in regards to our understanding and application of prayer.
First, do we see prayer as primarily the way God would have us seek Him? Or do we see prayer as just the means we get things from God or have Him do something? Praise His name for granting our requests, but that is not the primary purpose for prayer. Go back and read today’s scripture. There is the promise of relationship – you pray, and I will hear. Friends, learn to see prayer as God’s desire for us to spend time with Him to know Him.
Next, refuse to neglect prayer due to busy lives and the difficulty in developing this type of seeking prayer. I know this is hard, but that is because of its importance in the lives of the Christian and church. Prayer is always and diligently opposed by the devil, his demonic minions, and our lazy flesh for they know the most important and necessary thing we do is seek God in prayer. The forces of evil don’t mind us reading the Bible. However, our spiritual enemies mind a lot when we read the Bible and pray. A Word-based prayer life, seeking the face of God, makes for a humble and influential believer who is being made like Christ. Conversely, Bible-reading alone produces a knowledgeable head but a proud heart and is anything but influential and like Christ. Prayer and Bible reading transform a life. Bible reading alone leaves us unchanged and cools our spiritual affections so don’t be imbalanced. Don’t let life’s fast pace keep us from carving out sacred alone time with God in prayer to get close to Him. And to help us learn this type of praying, use the Bible. Pray the Word to Him. It delights His heart as we do. This discipline of prayer to seek God isn’t just for our individual walks with the Lord. It extends to praying with other believers. We need to pray together. It strengthens and encourages us. It also helps us build discipline in our lives toward prayer by holding us accountable.
So, we have a great promise – finding God which is the pathway to knowing, loving, worshipping, and enjoying Him. He has chosen prayer as the chief means to find Him. May He help us not only see this truth, but practice this truth alone and with other believers.
PRAYER: “Father, teach me to pray as Your Son’s disciples asked of Him.”
QUOTE: “The most difficult discipline in the Christian life and church is true Biblical prayer because it is the most important”