Seeking God for His Presence vs. His Blessings

I use to see God as a cosmic vending machine. I figured I could bargain with Him to get the things I wanted in this life. You know, the old I’ll do this for you if you’ll get me out of this jam or provide me with that house or car or whatever. There was no relationship, just my wants.

When I returned to the Fathers house, I brought a lot of baggage with me as a result of my sin. I was still trying to bargain my way through life. This time it was to deal with my actions and their consequences. I was trying to get God to wipe away the issues I caused so I did not have to deal with them. The law of sewing and reaping, for the most part, can not be undone.

Yes, God can perform the miraculous in anything, but if He did we’d never learn a thing. Plus, there would be no need for us to deal with the sin in our lives.

It took a while for me to realized that I needed to seek Him first. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matt 6:33 NIV Before He can pour out His blessings on you, He has to prepare your heart to receive them.

Man’s vision of success does not equal a happy life. I had all of that and my life was empty. God stripped me down to the bare bones (that’s what I needed) and is rebuilding me and the life I lead in His imagine. I still have a ways to travel, but the journey is so much better than when I was doing it my way.

Blessings

Seeking God for His Presence vs. His Blessings
TGIF Today God Is First NextGen
by Charis Hillman Brown

“And Solomon, my son, learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and a willing mind. For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.” -1 Chronicles 28:9

A mentor of mine was in town, and he was talking about the importance of seeking God’s presence. “So many people seek God for what He can do for them, but that’s not what’s important. What’s important is seeking God for His presence.”

There is so much that vies for our attention from the time we’re young until the time we leave this earth. The world makes us think certain things are more important than they are – money, success, material possessions, and marital status to name a few.

Many times we start out seeking God because of what He can do for us. We seek Him because we realize we need a Savior. Then, we seek Him because we need financial security. Or we want a husband or a wife. “If God would only give me this one thing… than I would be happy!” we tell ourselves. But the truth is, seeking God to get what we want won’t bring us happiness – it’s His presence that helps us to enjoy the things we do have – and the ability to cherish the things He gives us in the future. It’s a backwards equation – we seek God for Him and find contentment, and then perhaps, He allow us to have the things we desired when they no longer have power over us. He asks each of us, “Am I enough?”

“Those who weep or who rejoice or who buy things should not be absorbed by their weeping or their joy or their possessions. Those who use the things of the world should not become attached to them. For this world as we know it will soon pass away. I want you to be free from the concerns of this life. An unmarried man can spend his time doing the Lord?s work and thinking how to please him.” -1 Corinthians 7:30-32 NLT

In the end, the stuff or the people or the circumstances don’t matter. At the end of our lives, it will be God and us – that’s it. We need to live a life that honors Him, because He is the only thing that matters in the end. No one and nothing else has a say in our eternity.

Are you seeking God for His presence?