God bless you in the wonderful name of Jesus Christ whose meat was to do God’s will and finish his work (John 4:34).
God is interested in those who seek Him. David pictured God doing so.
Psalms 53:2: [See also Psalms 14:2]
God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God.
When we exercise ourselves unto godliness (I Timothy 4:7) there will be a very beneficial training effect. God rewards them that seek Him (Hebrews 11:6).
Psalms 119:32:
I will run the way of thy commandments, when thou shalt enlarge my heart.
That’s a cardio work out. When we run the way of His commandments, He strengthens our hearts. Paul was a great New Testament example of pursuing God and the things of God. Paul never stopped pursuing God. He did it personally and deliberately. He thirsted for more, and his relationship with God and His son Jesus Christ grew.
It’s tragic when we abandon our own personal pursuits and allow our seeking to be done for us by our teachers. Many believers after being born-again become lulled into thinking that they have found Him and need no longer to seek after Him. Rather than crave more of Him they acquiesce to the comfort of the common place.
Ruth went to glean expecting to find grace, and she did. When she found it, she humbly requested for it to continue. Such is the experience of men and women after God’s heart: Wherever and whenever true grace appears there is a desire for more of it. I don’t think when Paul said, “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18), his aim was to make God-aholics out of all of us. It is true however that following hard after God and serving His people can be graciously addicting (I Corinthians 16:15). What we love we seek after. Once we have found Him we should want more of Him.
Philippians 3:7-8:
But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. 8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ.
Notice verse 7 is past tense, (counted), probably referring to his road to Damascus conversion and healing with Jesus and Ananias (Acts 9). But verse 8 is present tense, (count), he continues to renounce everything that hinders him from continuing to know Christ better. It wasn’t a once and done deal; it was a continuous pursuit.
When Paul prays for the already born-again believers in Ephesians 3:18-19 he asks that they “may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.” There is so much of Christ yet to be known! His wonders are inexhaustible, and he wants to amaze us.
Philippians 3:12-16:
Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. 13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in anything ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you. 16 Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.
Paul followed after God because he knew he had not attained [Greek lambanō, received into manifestation] all that he wanted. He wanted more, so he went after it. He longed for all God made available. His honest evaluation of his life was that he had not yet attained all he desired.
He presses forward toward the mark [the goal or prize] by forgetting those things which were behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before. Now this doesn’t mean that memory has no place as we walk by the spirit. It most certainly does (Psalms 77:11 & Hebrews 11). However, we only look back for the sake of pressing forward. Let’s never substitute nostalgia for hope. We mustn’t allow past successes to make us smug, complacent and self-satisfied, and we mustn’t allow past failures to make us disheartened, hopeless and debilitated.
Paul provides his own illustration of pressing forward in I Corinthians 9:25-27. The way to follow after God is with the discipline and self-denial of an athlete. He lived with spiritual goals in view and controlled his passions for the sake of those goals.
Let’s enjoy the adventure of going after God and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. What rich fellowship lies ahead. What joy and intimacy are in store. Enjoy your day! You’re God’s best and certainly God blessed.