Hide or Seek
Blog by Sue Fitzgerald
Are you full on seeking God with all of your being or are you just playing a game and hiding as the younger kids often do- in plain sight? Jesus teaches us that the greatest commandment is: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ Matthew 22:37 NIV. He wants to be the center of our lives and yet sometimes, it seems like we are playing a Hide ‘n Seek with God.
I love the theme of this year’s Wave Conference- SEEK. I believe that Wave Conference is a few special days in our busy lives, set aside to do just that- SEEK GOD. Whether you’re in ministry at a church or ministry in your job or home, it’s all ministry and we all need time to put the business aside and connect with God at a new level. Seems funny to me that I can be in the middle of a few thousand people, but God will connect personally with just me- through worship, through a speaker or just as often in quiet times between sessions or reflecting back on it all at the end of conference. It’s refreshing and always re-centers me.
I remember years ago in my college summer break, I took on a job as a Photography Instructor at a camp in upstate New York. One weekend, I was away on a camping trip with about 8 of the girls and another counselor in the New York State Forest. I wasn’t from this area and had never stepped foot in these woods before. One of the girls had an epileptic seizure one morning and I took off running to find the camp doctor who was at another site about 1/8 mile away. Running, I lost track of the trail, and all of a sudden I was LOST big time. After wandering in circles for what seemed like hours, I made it my quest to find the lake. Once I found the lake, I knew I would be safe and find my way out or others would come find me. I think the same holds true in our walk with Jesus. To be safe, to find our way, we need to constantly go back to the “Living Water” – go back to our source, to seek the one who died for our sins and our transgressions.
Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) is an often quoted scripture that we use to encourage others. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” Personally, I believe this verse defines what I’m called to do in life- to let people know- God’s not done with you- He loves you- He has a plan for you! But, what we often omit, when quoting this scripture, is the next two verses- “Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:12-13 (NIV)
God has so much more for us, but we have a part to play in seeing it all come to be. We need to seek Him with all our hearts. The Message version puts it this way, “When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I’ll listen. When you come looking for me, you’ll find me. Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.’ God’s Decree.” Jeremiah 29:12-14a (MSG) “When we come looking and get serious about finding him”- couldn’t be much clearer and yet sometimes seems so hard. I think the answer is to desire to love God with all our heart, to ask the Holy Spirit to help and guide us and to bravely step out unashamedly showing our love of Him to this world. Maybe they aren’t big steps, but small steps to seek Him daily! OK, it’s your turn- you are ‘IT’. Seek Him will all your heart and find Him.