Why don’t we choose to devote ourselves to God more wholeheartedly? Even though we say we desire fellowship with Him, perhaps we’re not willing to let go of the alternative. Trying to find a way to have both alternatives at once, our hearts are divided.
We won’t grow wise without seeking God, and we won’t seek God without humility, respect, and reverence. That is why the fear of the Lord is the “beginning” of wisdom. Pride always corrupts the learning process, so if we wish to learn, we must humble ourselves.
Since it takes time for the real consequences of our actions to show up, the emptiness of work that disregards God is not always apparent right now. But eventually the failure of godless activity will become clear. The wise are willing to be warned about this.
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23,24). Such honesty before God is painful, but without it, there is no growth toward God.
Nothing short of divine love can equip us to love others as we should, for it is our security in God’s perfect love that makes it safe to love those who are not perfect. Without the God who ordained them, the laws of love would be difficult and dangerous indeed.
To seek God, in truth rather than in pride and self-sufficiency, is to seek Him in reverence. It is God’s prerogative, not ours, to set the terms of our relationship with Him, and that relationship will not be what we long for it to be until we let God be God.
By faith, we seek to please God because we love Him. It is faith that gives wings to love’s natural desire. Showing us not only that God can be pleased but how we may do so, faith gives true substance to love’s highest wish: the pleasure of our beloved God.
God holds every true treasure that our hearts yearn for, and He “can satisfy the last aching abyss of the human soul” (Oswald Chambers). His will is for us to seek Him sincerely and make our supplication to Him concerning every empty place within us.
As long as sin fractures our commitment to God, we won’t enjoy the fullness that can only come from perfect commitment. But if we genuinely seek God in trust and obedience, we’ll find a joy that, although incomplete for now, is nevertheless deep and true.
God has made “everything beautiful in its time” (Ecclesiastes 3:11). The limited joy that so intrigues us now is a delightful hint of what lies ahead for those who diligently seek God. Having been given the ability to foretaste eternity, we are being drawn toward Him.
