Revel in the Wonder

Revel in the Wonder
Seeking God begins with reveling in the wonder that He first loved me. I didn’t go after Him. I didn’t pursue His heart or try to win His affection. He first loved me.

There is no greater wonder than this—that He loved first.

“We love Him because He first loved us.” (1 John 4:19)

Thank You, God
I could sit and soak in that truth for a lifetime. You first loved me.

Before I came to You as a five-year-old child . . . You loved me.

Before I understood how easily I could fall into traitorous sin . . . You loved me.

Before I learned to press into You for grace to counter temptation’s draw . . . You loved me.

Before I realized that memorizing Your Word is a doorway to unearthing hidden treasure . . . You loved me.

Before I applied myself to spiritual exercise in order to mature . . . You loved me.

You knew me at my worst, and yet You still chose me and extended Your love to me.

Are You Amazed?
In order to seek God, begin by letting Him know how amazed you are that He would seek you. That He would choose you and call you to Himself.

Never let that truth be turned into a perverted scheme of the enemy to puff you up in pride. How can we be proud of the fact that He would choose us if we really understand how depraved and undeserving we are? How can pride enter that equation?

If we desire to seek God, we’ll enter our journey through the doorway of humility. We’ll see ourselves as the needy creatures we are, and we’ll bow before Him admitting we need a Redeemer. Repentance will become our lifestyle.

We’ll live daily in light of these truths:

• God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6).
• If we try to hide our sin, hold onto it, cherish and feed it, God will close His ears (Ps. 66:18).
• Seeking Him requires an open heart, one that is eager to receive instruction in order to walk in obedience, be conformed to His image (2 Cor. 3:18), and glorify Him.
• Seeking Him means digging into God’s Word (Ps. 119:12–18) to find out what He desires, to get on the same page with Him. It is listening for His voice as He connects the truth of His Word to the deepest places of my heart by the power of the Spirit.
• Seeking Him stops when I place my agenda above God’s, when I seek my will before His, when I refuse to obey the hard directives from His Word.

Is there anything standing in the way of you seeking Him today?