Seek

Good Morning,


Seek is a serious word in the Bible.  The book of Proverbs says to seek wisdom as silver.  We are urged to “seek the Lord while He may be found;” but there is another verse less familiar to most of us: “...that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring:” (Numbers 15:39). 

We are NOT to SEEK the things we desire.  (Wow!  That messes up most goal-setting of today.)  Read that last verse again: “...seek not after your own heart and your own eyes…"  Yet, that is what Americans are being taught to do.  

Just what is it we SEEK?  What are our children taught to SEEK?  When our young people begin dating and considering marriage, what do they SEEK?  Regarding goals and dreams, God told Israel not to SEEK the things of this world, neither their peace nor their prosperity.  

Deuteronomy 23:6 "Thou shalt not seek their peace nor their prosperity all thy days for ever.”


When Israel was headed for trouble, God assured them that when they faced the consequences, they could seek Him and find Him.

Deuteronomy 4:29 “But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.”

Seeking spiritual goals is far more vital to life than seeking carnal achievements.  Of course, we want our children to do well in school, and sure, if they play ball, we want them to do their best and win.  (No one ever enjoyed a participation trophy except the misguided leaders who give them away.)  We want our children to seek to achieve and to succeed.  But for most of us, as Christian parents, we want athletics to transfer lessons into life: setting goals, learning drive and commitment, dealing with injustice, and much more.  The trophy is small in comparison to what we SEEK.  For our young people, we SEEK a life.  


Before marriage, we ought to consider what we SEEK and what the potential partner SEEKS.  I mean, do both parties involved have similar goals, dreams, and desires for the future?  I remember hearing an old farmamily mention that the girls left home as soon as they turned eighteen and got married as soon as possible, just to get away from the farm.  They knew what they wanted to leave, but had not yet learned what they sought – and that is dangerous. 

Beginning in childhood, wise parents talk about the home, goals of a home, and of the elements that make a home work.  Children and teens need to consider life and home long before they begin to give their hearts away. Online dating services have learned this simple principle.  They talk about a soul mate and about people who have similar backgrounds and goals. This is what every teen should know thoroughly before starting to date.  Each one must ask himself, “What do I SEEK?” 


As Christians, what do we SEEK?  Why do we pick the church we attend?  Why do we choose the social activities, friends, or the way we spend our money? All these things are indicators of what we SEEK.  


Here are a few passages that might help us rethink what we are supposed to SEEK:

1 Chronicles 16:10 “Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the LORD.”

vs. 11 “Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually.” 


1 Chronicles 22:19 “Now set your heart and your soul to seek the LORD your God…"

1 Chronicles 28:8 “Now therefore in the sight of all Israel the congregation of the LORD, and in the audience of our God, keep and seek for all the commandments of the LORD your God: that ye may possess this good land, and leave it for an inheritance for your children after you for ever.”

This passage might best lay out what believers ought to SEEK.  

1 Chronicles 28:9 “And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever.” 


Notice the outline in that last verse: know God, serve God, seek God.  That is a good summary of the Bible suggestions when we consider what we should SEEK.  


Advertisements and malls turn our hearts to appearance, pleasure, long life, or fame.  Did you know that the Scriptures never urge us to seek health? Instead, Paul spoke of dying daily, dying to self, and living a crucified life. God desires our hearts be turned to SEEK eternal things.  The greatest aspect of this concept is that anyone can do it.  You do not need to be skinny and anorexic, have riches, be athletic, have perfect hair, drive a fancy car, or have a perfect complexion; all can SEEK the things of God, and that alone pleases our Heavenly Father.  

Pastor