The Glorious Pursuit - Day Eight

My days are given to a familiar routine lately. More and more of my time is taken up in prayer and conversing with the Lord. These have been some of the sweetest encounters in all the days I have been a follower of Jesus. His presence is real. The word of God is coming alive to me daily as I read truth. My ears are attentive to His voice. In all of this I have found a contentment I have not known for years.

I am settled in my mind and heart. My mission is increasingly clear. My focus in set toward the Lord and revival. Every day seems like an adventure and I am eager to get before the Lord and pour my heart out to Him but more importantly to hear Him speak to me.

He is making me glad. I can say I rejoice in the Lord and He has made me glad. Day by day and at times hour by hour He makes me glad. These are good days. As I continue to devote myself to this glorious pursuit I am finding [Jer 29:13] true. "You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart." I am seeking the Lord with all my heart and daily I am discovering more of Him. Though we have not even attended one minute of a revival service I am being revived.

I have wasted so much in time in pursuit of growing a church, making financial ends meet, and other lesser things. In these days God has become the pursuit. I can truly say I have sought for Him with all my heart and in doing so He is opening the scriptures and meeting with me in profound ways. There is no place I would rather be than shut up with Him enjoying His presence.

Why are we content with less than the fullness of God's presence at work in our lives and churches? Why are we content with dutiful devotions devoid of precious presence of God? Why are we so easily distracted from making God our pursuit? [Ps 40:16] "Let all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; let those who love your salvation say continually, the Lord be magnified."

Can you say the Lord is the cause of your rejoicing and gladness. He is the source of gladness. Other things may make us happy for a season but only God can truly bring everlasting gladness into our hearts. He is our reason to rejoice regardless of what we are facing. I say great is the Lord and may He be magnified, exalted, and promoted on this earth.

Do we love God's salvation. I will not forget the days of confusion and darkness before I knew the Lord. I am still humbled that a prayer of repentance and asking Jesus for salvation changed everything. I walked out of that football stadium a new man. Over two decades later God is still making me a new man. I am learning to humble myself and to be a servant as Jesus served others. I still want others to know the greatness of this salvation and as recently as this past Sunday I preached this message to all who attended. I seek opportunities to share this good news with people outside of church.

I want everyone to know what a great God we serve. I live to promote the greatness of God through writing and through preaching. He is the big deal. I am not a big deal at all. He must increase while I continue to decrease. [Jn 3:30]

Today the desire to seek more of God only intensifies. The more I meet with Him and experience Him the more I long for Him. These are some the greatest days in my pilgrimage with the Lord. I yearn for Him more and more. Time is nearing for me leave the office. I have other commitments. Like the old hymn goes, "The joy we share as we tarry there none other has ever known."There is no way I could sum up what these days have meant or what I have experienced while locked away with the Lord. He has my undivided attention and my affection. I love Him but I long to love Him more.

What do I hope to get out of these writings? I hope some dry and weary soul will come across these and find them an oasis of spiritual revival for their souls. I write this hoping others might be motivated to seek God with all their hearts and to find Him in ways they have never experienced before. The glorious pursuit of God and revival is not a pursuit of a few days or a few weeks. It is the pursuit of a lifetime. It is a relentless pursuit. It is the pursuit of gladness and rejoicing. Pursue with me.