I'm about two months into a new appointment, which means a new city, a new church, and a new home. The city and church have their things in order. And most things are in place at home, too. But there have been several times when I've had to actually seek something out. That's gotten me turned around in the city, taught me what I don't have at the church, and left me wondering how in the world I lost what I could always find at home.
The thing is, when I find what I'm looking for, all I have to do next is not forget it or misplace it.
But what about seeking God?
Considering the glory of God's name, the psalmist in Psalm 105 tells us to "seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually." Well, is that something we find once and for all? Is it something we can lose?
The rest of the psalm gives us a clue.
Psalm 105 is basically a long memory. The psalmist starts telling stories: Abraham, Joseph, Egypt, Moses, and the Exodus. “Remember the wonderful works he has done,” the psalm says.
So, the command to seek God is surrounded by the command to remember God.
Seeking God, then, isn't always about finding God somewhere we haven't looked before, but remembering where we've already experienced God.
Remember how God's grace carried you, or remember the prayer that was answered. Even the strength that came when it wasn't. Remember the person who blessed you. The door that opened, and how you made it through what you weren't sure you would survive.
We don't seek God continually because God keeps wandering off. We seek because we do.
And the shortest path back to noticing God's presence today begins by remembering God's faithfulness yesterday.
Stay blessed...john
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