Seekers

"Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near"  Isaiah 55:6

One morning as I was bringing the horses from the pasture to the barn for their feed, I stopped to consider Reva's behavior.  The horses like to press in at the gate when they know it's time to go, which makes it hard to take out one at a time, so in order to teach them to give space, we walk into the middle of the pasture and wait for them to come to us to get the halter on.  The horses are quick to catch on, and most of them will now follow us to the middle.  They know if they seek out the human, they get to go in to their feed.  But I noticed that Reva was hanging back.  Did she want to go to the barn as much as the others did?  Sure!  She wanted it, but because she has a less dominant nature and probably is afraid of being pushed away by the other horses, she would stay in the background.  If she would trust me enough to seek me out, despite her uncertainties, I would put her halter on and lead her through her fear.  If another horse tried to bully her, I would take care of the problem for her and get her safely to the barn.  But instead, she waited for me to come after her.  I still care about her and intend to take her to her stall, and I will come and get her, but she could go a lot sooner if she would come to me. She would be happier and more secure if she walked by faith, trusting me to keep her safe from the scary things she sees between us.    But Reva is doing what we often do.  She is walking by sight.  Once she sees the other horses that might bother her are out of the way, she may come to me.  Or she may still hang back and wait for me to come and coax her. She is trying to look out for herself, but in reality she's being controlled by her fear. 

God tells us over and over in His Word, "Seek Me."  He is a compassionate and merciful Father who has loved us before we loved Him and has sought us out in the first place.  If He did not pursue us, we would never seek Him.  But once we have come to know Him, His desire is that we would seek Him out; push through distraction, temptation, and fear with a desire to be near Him that is stronger than any other desire. God want us to know Him intimately. He promised to make Himself known to us. But He requires that we seek Him, and that we do it with all of our heart. 

"And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart." Jer. 29:13

If we choose to walk by sight and hang back because of our fears, God will still come after us and give us abundant opportunities to submit to Him. He loves us that much. But His ultimate goal is for us to believe (trust) Him enough that we will leave everything else behind and come willingly to His side. 

"But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." Hebrews 11:6

What about you?  Will you listen to your fears today?  Or will you come to Jesus and trust Him to lead you to the good things He has prepared?

Story told by B.L.