Seek the Lord - We’re told to seek Him always, but what could be the reason that we don’t?
Trevor Lund is the Content Creator for RevTrev.com and the Founder of the Live LIGHT Academy on LiveLIGHT.ca He created the Live LIGHT with Your Whole Heart Course that helps you move from giving your problems a place of too much influence to having no fear of bad news even when it comes. If you want to avoid cognitive avoidance, cognitive dissonance and toxic behaviour learn more and sign up for the course at the best price now https://revtrev.link/heart
Do you seek Him always or do you withdraw from his presence?
Do you have that sweet time of prayer, or do you leave with less peace than you came with?
Do you have a vibrant relationship with the maker of the universe, or do you go through the motions and hope nobody notices?
I’ve found 5 main reasons why we may not seek the Lord or always seek the Lord.
I asked ChatGPT “As a gifted wordsmith to come up with a 5 letter word to describe why we don’t seek the Lord always using the 5 words I’ve come up with, with permission to change the words so they work in an acrostic.” The word it came up with is BLAME.
And thus was born - in minutes not months - the tool:
What’s to BLAME when I don’t seek the Lord tool
B - Blindness - Ignorance
L - Loftiness - Arrogance
A - Assumption - Misplaced Trust
M - Mateyness - Familiarity
E - Error - Offence
B - Blindness - Ignorance
Psalm 53:2-3 God looks down from heaven on the entire human race; he looks to see if anyone is truly wise, if anyone seeks God. But no, all have turned away; all have become corrupt. No one does good, not a single one!
What is seeking? How do I do it with my whole heart?
To seek God with all of your heart it involves your decision, with your emotion and with your actions. Check out the message Seek the Lord with your Whole Heart to learn more https://revtrev.com/living-light/seek-the-lord-with-your-whole-heart/
What’s the antidote to blindness and ignorance?
Knowledge. I’ve just given you information at https://revtrev.com/living-light/seek-the-lord-with-your-whole-heart/.
Information is only as good as the transformation it helps facilitate.
It’s what you do with the information that will lead to knowledge and wisdom. It’s up to you to act on the information you have and seek Him and live.
1 Timothy 2:4 NIV …wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.
Do I know how and why to seek the Lord?
If you do, great. But if you know how and why but you’re honestly not… and it’s not because Blindness - Ignorance, it might be because of Loftiness or Arrogance.
L - Loftiness - Arrogance
Psalm 10:4 The wicked are too proud to seek God. They seem to think that God is dead.
Isaiah 65:1-2 NLT “The Lord says, “I was ready to respond, but no one asked for help. I was ready to be found, but no one was looking for me. I said, ‘Here I am, here I am!’ to a nation that did not call on my name. All day long I opened my arms to a rebellious people. But they follow their own evil paths and their own crooked schemes.”
What’s the antidote to arrogance?
Humility
Zephaniah 2:3 Seek the Lord, all who are humble, and follow his commands. Seek to do what is right and to live humbly.
Humility comes through confession and repentance. It starts with agreeing with God that not seeking Him is sin, then choosing to seek with all of your heart continually.
Am I too proud to seek the Lord?
If you are, confess and repent. But maybe it’s not Blindness - Ignorance or Loftiness - Arrogance. It could be Assumption or misplaced trust that keeps you from seeking God always.
A - Assumption - Misplaced Trust
Isaiah 31:1 Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help And rely on horses, And trust in chariots because they are many And in horsemen because they are very strong, But they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord!
2 Chronicles 16:12 In the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa developed a serious foot disease. Yet even with the severity of his disease, he did not seek the Lord’s help but turned only to his physicians.
What’s the antidote to Assumption - Misplaced trust?
Testimony.
Testimony that reminds yourself that God is the trustable one.
Psalm 9:10 (NIV) Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.
If you feel you’d rather trust what God has entrusted to you than God Himself. Then the tools of Confession and repentance will help you. He is a jealous God and will have no other God before Him. It doesn’t make sense to trust in the creation and not really trust in the Creator.
Am I trusting in anything or anyone more than I am trusting in God?
The good news is when we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
If Blindness, Loftiness, or Assumption aren’t the reason your not seeking the Lord, it could be Mateyness or familiarity.
M - Mateyness - Familiarity
Mark 6:1-6 Jesus left that part of the country and returned with his disciples to Nazareth, his hometown. The next Sabbath he began teaching in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. They asked, “Where did he get all this wisdom and the power to perform such miracles?” Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.” And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was amazed at their unbelief.
Familiarity can lead to contempt will lead to unbelief and that will stop the miraculous.
What is the antidote to familiarity?
Curiosity.
Proverbs 25:2 It is God’s privilege to conceal things and the king’s privilege to discover them.
How do you stay curious?
Remember the
4 L’s of curiosity
- Let go of your need to be right.
- Learn to be present in the moment.
- Listen to understand not to respond.
- Leverage questions to understand better.
Use the 4 L’s of Curiosity to deepen your awe of God. Find some of the answers for your questions in the Bible, but learn to trust Him when questions have no answers.
Trusting Him when questions have no answers is faith.
Hebrews 11:6 And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.
Am I too satisfied with my knowledge of God?
Don’t lose your awe of God. If you have, the tools we have are confession and repentance. Confess to God that you that you’ve become too familiar and maybe that’s why you haven’t seen too many miracles lately. Then get curious about Him again.
E - Error - Offence
Matthew 11:2-6 HCSB When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent a message by his disciples and asked Him, “Are You the One who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” Jesus replied to them, “Go and report to John what you hear and see: the blind see, the lame walk, those with skin diseases are healed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor are told the good news. And if anyone is not offended because of Me, he is blessed.”
John was Jesus’ cousin. He had declared Jesus the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. But he was in prison and the Messiah was supposed to proclaim freedom for the prisoners. So he asked his cousin if He was the one of if they should wait for another.
It’s an honest question. One that shows his doubt.
Hosea 5:15 I will go away and return to My place Until they acknowledge their guilt and seek My face; In their affliction they will earnestly seek Me.
The antidote to offence at God is confession and repentance.
You will never confess and never repent if you’re too spiritual to think that you can ever be offended at God.
Your emotions show you what you really believe. If you know you’re not always seeking God with your whole heart - and none of what I’ve said makes any sense in your situation - offence is the place to go.
Zephaniah 1:6 And I will destroy those who used to worship me but now no longer do. They no longer ask for the Lord’s guidance or seek my blessings.”
Am I living offended at God?
Don’t let offence lead to unbelief.
Next Steps
7 Things the Bible Says we can Seek God For https://revtrev.com/living-light/7-things-the-bible-says-we-can-seek-the-lord-for/
17 Reasons to Seek the Lord (coming soon)
14 ways to Seek the Lord (coming soon)
Seek the Lord with Your Whole Heart https://revtrev.com/living-light/seek-the-lord-with-your-whole-heart/
Seek the Lord when you don’t know what to do https://revtrev.com/living-light/seek-the-lord-when-you-dont-know-what-to-do/
Seek the Lord when no one is watching https://revtrev.com/message/seek-the-lord-when-no-one-is-watching/
40 Essential Bible Verses on Seeking God with my whole heart (coming soon)
42 Bible Verse on Seeking God When you don’t know what to do (coming soon)
39 Amazing Bible Verses on Seeking the Lord (coming soon)
16 Reasons You Can Trust in the Lord with all Your Heart (coming soon)
