A lifestyle of seeking the Lord

Jeremiah 29:11-14a (NKJV): For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 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. I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity...

From the verses above, do you realize God already has your future in His mind? And your future has to be of peace, and not of evil. No question about that. By the way, the word 'peace' here is 'shalowm' in Hebrew, and it can mean any of these: safe, happy, favorable, (good) health, prosperity, restful, whole, well. Awesome! But do you know that's just the first part?

Now, notice the word 'THEN' in this passage. It means the Lord wants to say further! To put it simply, He's saying, "Now that you know your future is assured, how do you begin walking in it?" The answer of course is found right after the first part, that is when you begin calling upon Him and seeking Him! You see, many people read only the first part (Jeremiah 29:11), but they forget to read the later parts of this whole passage!

The Lord spoke these words recently:

"Seek Me, and I will be found by you! Call upon Me, and I will clear the way for you! Do not look to the left or right, for all your answers this year are found in Me!"

What does it mean by 'seeking the Lord'? It is to look to Him, draw near to Him, and consult Him. In fact, it is an ongoing lifestyle of those who know Him, love Him, and desire to follow Him.

Yes, you read it correctly. It should be ongoing, and not just when one is in trouble or have a pressing need. One example of such person who walked in this lifestyle is David, whom the Bible calls 'a man after God's own heart' (1 Samuel 13:14, Acts 13:22). Here's a man who had learned to know God's heart, walk with God, and talk with God as his lifestyle! By the way, what is a 'lifestyle'? It simply means 'the way in which a person lives'.

David has always been a seeker of God, and this has been his lifestyle since the days of his youth. Some people see a 'seeker of God' as someone 'who do not know God, but is open to know God'. But that's not what we are talking about here. In Jeremiah 29:13, this word 'seek' is 'baqash' in Hebrew, and it actually means 'to pursue (God)'. It is like when you are hotly 'pursuing' someone, you (already) know who that someone is, and you won't want to lose sight of that someone! In fact, you'll do whatever it takes to follow (or chase after) that someone! And that was exactly how David pursued God!

And because this has been David's lifestyle all along, when challenges came, he knew who to turn to. He did not turn to the left or to the right. He did not seek a fortune teller or a medium, which king Saul actually did upon seeing the army of the Philistines coming against him (1 Samuel 28:7). In contrast, when David was faced with one of the toughest times in his life (when his town Ziklag was invaded and burned, his wives being taken captives, and his own people wanting to stone him), he did not turn to the left or to the right. He turned to God and sought God (1 Samuel 30:8). The Lord God then gave him instruction to attack the enemy, and in turn, he recovered all that the enemy had taken away! (1 Samuel 30:18-19)

Not long after that, when king Saul had died, and after a period of mourning, again David sought the Lord his God, and this time, as to where to go (2 Samuel 2:1). The Lord said to go to Hebron, and there, at the right place and right time, he was anointed king over Judah! (2 Samuel 2:4) After a long war between Israel and Judah (yet the house of David grew stronger and stronger), the elders of Israel finally came to David to meet him at Hebron, and David made a covenant with them, and there he was anointed king over all Israel (2 Samuel 5:1-3) And that's how he eventually became king over all Israel and Judah. See? God's plans for David were unfolding more and more, every step of the way!

So, what was the secret of David walking into greater and greater things? The answer is easy. Because David lived a lifestyle of seeking God. You see, not only did he find God's heart, he also found all of God's answers for him, as to 'what to do', 'where to go', and 'how to go about', every step of the way. The Scripture says 'David went on and became great, and the Lord God of hosts was with him' (2 Samuel 5:10). Hallelujah!

People of God, may you also see God's plans for your life unfolding more and more this year, and greater works shall you do for His glory, as you begin living a lifestyle of seeking God. Amen!

Your time of recovery is now!

The Lord spoke these words recently:
"Stay strong in Me, and do not settle for less this year! For this is the year of your recovery, and this is the year I am calling you to enter greater blessings! Like David who recovered and became a greater blessing, so are you!"

In 1 Samuel chapter 30, you'd see how the town called Ziklag (where David lived in that season of his life) was invaded by the Amalekites, and how his own wives and children were taken captive by the enemy while he was away.

1 Samuel 30:1-3 (NKJV) says, 'Now it happened, when David and his men came to Ziklag, on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the South and Ziklag, attacked Ziklag and burned it with fire, and had taken captive the women and those who were there, from small to great; they did not kill anyone, but carried them away and went their way. So David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive'.

1 Samuel 30:4-6 (NKJV) then says, 'Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep... Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God'.

Speaking of losses, David was in a time when not only his own wives and children were taken captive by the Amalekites, and the town given to him was burned, but now his own people were speaking of stoning him!

But instead of beating and blaming himself for what had happened, the Scripture says 'David strengthened himself in the Lord'. People of God, maybe you too have gone through a time of 'loss' or 'defeat' recently, and you have been rather discouraged and grieved by it. As a matter of fact, we all have such times at one time or another. In times like these, stay strong in the Lord, and do not give up looking to Him. The word 'strengthened' here is 'khawzak' in Hebrew, which can be translated as 'encouraged'. In fact, in King James Version (KJV), it is written 'David encouraged himself in the Lord'.

How do you strengthen (encourage) yourself in the Lord?
1. Remember God's love for you.
2. Remember God's promises/calling/vision for your life.
3. Remember God's faithfulness in your life.

Remember God's love for you
Let the Lord embrace you and fill you with His love again. Romans 8:37 (NKJV) says, 'Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who love us'. David encouraged himself in the fact that the Lord's love for him never fails. After all, his name means 'beloved'.

Remember God's promises/calling/vision for your life
Remember you have a God-given destiny, and with a yielded heart to Him, He will help you to fulfill it. Philippians 1:6 (ESV) says, 'Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion...' David remembered his God-given destiny, and how the Lord had spoken to him through the prophet Samuel during his younger days. David encouraged himself in the fact that God hasn't taken that destiny/calling away, in spite of his 'losses' at that juncture of his life

Remember God's faithfulness in your life
Remember you have a faithful God, and continue to put your trust in Him for your deliverance and victory. It will surely come. Lamentations 3:22-23 (NLT) says, 'The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is His faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh each morning'. David encouraged himself in the fact that if God has done it before, God can do it again. As He did against Goliath in David's younger days, so could God now! And if God has opened a way for you before, God can open a way for you again!

With a new strength from the Lord to carry on, and as he inquired of the Lord on his next course of action, David recovered it all and rose to great victory, which in turn brought great blessings to those around him (1 Samuel 30:26-31). 1 Samuel 30:17-19 (NKJV) says, 'Then David attacked them (the Amalekites) from twilight until the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled. So David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away, and David rescued his two wives. And nothing of theirs was lacking, either small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything which they had taken from them; David recovered all'.

People of God, like David, you too are God's beloved. And no matter what 'loss' or 'defeat' you may have suffered in recent times, the Lord says your time of recovery is at hand, and He is calling you to enter a time of greater blessings this year! Look to Him afresh and anew today. His mercy is new every morning, and great is His faithfulness! Let Him bring you to where He has meant for you to be this year - GREATER BLESSINGS! Believe, and you shall receive. In Jesus' name. Amen!

Begin the year with LOVE!

As I was seeking the Lord for my first sermon in the year 2019, He simply said these words: "Begin the year with LOVE!"

He then gave an assurance through Psalm 71 (a psalm written by David, the beloved of God) for all of us to meditate upon. 

Psalm 71:1-3 (NKJV) says, 'In You, O Lord, I put my trust; Let me never be put to shame. Deliver me in Your righteousness, and cause me to escape; Incline Your ear to me, and save me. Be my strong refuge, to which I may resort continually; You have given the commandment to save me, for You are my rock and my fortress'. 

I believe this commandment the Lord has given us is first and foremost the commandment of LOVE. You can see that in Deuteronomy 6:5-6 that says, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts'. See the words 'are to be on your hearts' here? People of God, let His love so fill you, and be established in you, as you begin your journey in this year 2019!

Psalm 71:21-24a (NKJV) says, 'You shall increase my greatness, and comfort me on every side.

Also with the lute (string instrument) I will praise You— And Your faithfulness, O my God! To You I will sing with the harp, O Holy One of Israel. My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to You; And my soul, which You have redeemed. My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long...'

The word 'talk' here is 'hagah' in Hebrew, and it can mean 'to utter, to speak, to declare, to meditate'. Interestingly, this word 'hagah' is the same word as in Joshua 1:8 that says 'This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate ('hagah') in it day and night...'

Here's a compilation of some Bible verses on God's love for you to meditate ('hagah') upon in the year 2019. So, by all means, utter it, speak it, and declare it to yourself, so your ears will also hear! As you can see here, to meditate ('hagah') is not merely to read it silently, but as shown above, it is for you to utter it, speak it, and declare it with your mouth; and of course, into being! 

Bible verses on God's love (personalized for you)

1. I love God's name. God looks upon me and is merciful to me, and He will direct my steps with His Word (Psalm 119:132-133)

2. I am precious in God's sight and He loves me and honors me (Isaiah 43:4)

3. Nothing in this world can separate me from the love of God (Romans 8:35)

4. In all things, I am made more than conquerors through God who loves me (Romans 8:37)

5. I have the love of God, and God's love for me never fails (1 Corinthians 13:8)

6. My Lord Jesus Christ and God my Father, who has loved me and given me everlasting consolation and good hope, comforts my heart and establishes me in every good word and work (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17)

7. I love Jesus and rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory (1 Peter 1:8)

8. I have no fear in love, because perfect love casts out fear. I love Him because He first loved me (1 John 4:18-19)

9. God is love. I am born of God and I belong to God. I receive the love of God now and I can love one another (1 John 4:7-8)

10. God abides in me and His love has been established in me (1 John 4:12)

11. The life which I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God who loves me and gave Himself for me (Galatians 2:20)

12. I have hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in my heart by the Holy Spirit who was given to me (Romans 5:5)