Thursday, January 30, 2014

Lessons from a simple question

Seek Him First


Matthew 7:7 (NIV) “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

This morning my son reminded me of the fun way my Dad taught us (me and my sister) the words to Matthew 7:7. The “lesson” started when I was 6 or 7 years old and still continues to this day… 40 years later.

Today is the second snow day for my son. Two days ago much of the east coast was hit by Winter Storm Leon. My area got between 9 and 10 inches of snow…VERY uncommon for this area. Anyway, this morning he was getting in some target practice with his Nerf gun. He’d take aim at the refrigerator, the oven, the microwave, etc. and pull the trigger. When the cartridge holding the bullets was empty, he call out to me “Mom, where are my bullets?” I hadn’t even been in the kitchen where he was shooting. How should I know where his bullets are? This question triggered the memory of my childhood and my search for shoes, books, brushes, etc.

Whenever I’d say “Dad, where are my shoes?”

His response would almost always be “Matthew 7:7.”
Now, being in church nearly every Sunday and Wednesday since I was 7 days old, I recognized right away that Matthew as one of the books of the Bible and 7:7 was the book and verse location.

When the words “Mom, where are my bullets?” came out of my son’s mouth, I wanted to say “Matthew 7:7.” But I savored the memory of those moments with my Dad. Perhaps I will start saying the next time my son asks where something is.

In my quiet moments with the Lord this morning, I went back to Matthew 7:7. These words were spoken by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. My study this morning focused on the word “seek.” The Greek word for seek is zēteō which means:

to seek or strive after, endeavor, to desire

The question I asked myself this morning was:
“Do I desire or strive after seeking God and his plan for my life on a daily basis?”

Tough question for me to answer. I’d like to say I do…but sometimes I get overwhelmed by the stuff of my day and my quiet moments with the Lord get pushed to the side. If my desire is to wholeheartedly seeking Him, He should be the ONE thing I am not allowing to slip.

This year, I’ve made a commitment to wholeheartedly SEEK first the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33). I can’t wait to see what see what God will do in my life as I earnestly seek Him in everything I do.

Will you join me on this journey of SEEKING God first? Commit to give God the first and best of your day. Read your Bible, pray throughout the day about everything, and journal what you are feeling the Lord is saying to you.

“May all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who long for your saving help always say, “The Lord is great!” (Psalm 70:4)

Related reading:
Psalm 27:8, Psalm 69:32, Psalm 105:4, Proverbs 8:17, Romans 2:7,




No comments:

Post a Comment