Sometimes, it seems that our faith-life is all about the Praise Time, that feel-good external show, which suggests to the world that all’s good.
Yet, sometimes, we know that all is not well. And in those moments, we need the praise as well as the honesty to say to God, things aren’t all right. I’ve met believers who are uncomfortable with going to God about our concerns. (I’ve also met believers who seem challenged to pour out our praise to God.) What we learn from God’s Word, however, is that it’s a both-and. It doesn’t have to be either/or. We can seek God even when things are going well. Consider Today’s Holy Nougat.
Psalms 34:4 NIV
[4] I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.
Seeking God
It’s worth noting that the Hebrew word darash transliterates as pursue (follow or search for), seek out, tread or frequent, as well as worship. If we insert these words in the psalmist’s phrase, we will find that his seeking God was intentional. David searched for and followed God frequently, seeking God out so that he could worship God. This begs the question that is our self-check today
Self-Check
How frequently do we pursue God and God’s grace?
Deeper Dive
Siblings, what struck me as I visited Strong’s Concordance, was the inclusion of worship among the synonyms. This suggests that worship is more than just singing a few songs. It is about the ardent and intentional pursuit of God. Not only is it about reading God’s Word, but it begins with the recognition of God’s identity and character. When we acknowledge God’s God-ness, total surrender follows.
Yup
Total. Nothing left out. Giving our everything. Wholly Souled Out to God. It strikes me that this is the kind of seeking Jeremiah referred to in his oracle from God. He stated that we will seek and find God when we search for God with all our hearts (see Jeremiah 39:13).
David indicated that when he sought God, God answered him. In the Sermon on the Mount, Y’shua Jesus echoes that premise. He said,
Firstly, we must seek God’s Kingdom and the righteousness that is found only in God
Then we will find that –
Our lives will be aligned to God’s will and our needs are met (see Matthew 6:33)
Going by Romans 3:21, where Paul speaks about righteousness, we realize that righteousness is not about our goodness, it’s about our covering in Christ.
– That covering is ours when we yield to Christ’s Lordship.
– We yield to Christ when invite Him into our lives.
– We invite Y’shua into our lives when we meet Him through God’s Word (the preached or read Word).
– We strengthen that relationship by continuously seeking God.
– We seek God through our worship.
It’s all connected folks. Praise is a form of worshipping God. Worship is one way of seeking God. When faced with the hard place called Abimelek, having run away from Saul, David sought his Rock that is higher than high (Psalm 61:2-4), and reminded himself of God’s provision in the past. So too must we.
When we make time to worship God, we can expect answers. Not just miraculous provision, but God can and will speak to us when we make the time to pursue God.
Let’s not get bogged down by the tense of David’s encouragement to himself. We can opt to make the pursuit of God a continuous activity.
Point to Ponder
As we strengthen our worship life in the face of Life’s Lifting, how might our pursuit of God be different?
p.s.
I’ll be off on retreat for a few days, as I work in strengthening my worship. See you late next week
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May all we seek be found in Christ
