A couple of years ago I was on “sabbatical” – not by my choice, but by God’s. I was in between book contracts for a period of months, and during that waiting time I did a Bible study on listening and seeking God. Isaiah 26:1-12 was part of the “seeking” focus of the study.
“My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for You.” Isaiah 26:9
When we open our eyes and ears to seek Him, we see all that He has done, but seeking requires trust. Trust means believing someone is honest and reliable. It also means we have faith and confidence in a person, which in turn allows us to refocus and experience peace.
So our question becomes:
Do we trust that God is honest and reliable enough to focus on Him rather than our difficulties?
Trust enables us to refocus on God which in turn brings peace. When we have a deep relationship of trust, we seek Him day and night as Isaiah said above.
Our trust in God also helps us fulfill our role in His eternal plan. We place our trust in the solid Rock because He is unchanging, reliable, invincible.
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8
As we begin to seek Him, a reciprocal relationship is established.
We seek Him ~ to walk on His paths.
He makes our way smooth.
He leads us out of the fields of weeds into which we wander.
”Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6
We wait for Him—as we walk in His law. How can we wait and walk at the same time? In trusting God, waiting and walking go hand in hand. We cannot walk with Him unless we have done the hard work of waiting for Him to reveal Himself. We cannot—will not have the ability—to wait for Him to reveal Himself unless we have done the good work of walking through His Word.
When we are waiting, we can be tempted to seek what we desire. But if we are walking with God—through His Word—we will turn to seek the desire of our hearts, which will have been shaped by His Word. When we consider all that is wrapped up in His Name, it truly meets our deepest desires.
- He is I AM: we seek for meaning in our existence.
- He is the Wonderful Counselor: we long for guidance in our daily lives.
- He is the Prince of Peace: we hope for peace in our struggles.
- He is the Lord Almighty: even though we fight for control, we want to know someone is in charge who will watch over us and take care of us.
“Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4
God shows grace to all and reveals Himself to all—except the wicked who refuse to learn.
“The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” Romans 1:18-20
God simply asks of us an open heart. Then it is He who establishes our peace. We cannot do it ourselves.
“For He Himself is our peace…. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.” Ephesians 2:14, 17-18
Those who seek God recognize who He is and what He has done and know we have no peace without Him.
