IS IT TIME FOR A CHANGE?

BIBLE PASSAGE(S):
“Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord
rejoice. Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.”
(Psalm 105:3-4)

“There is a time for everything, and
a season for every activity under the heavens”
(Ecclesiastes 3:1)

MEDITATION:
Most of us have a time (or times) in our lives when we decide we
need to make some dramatic changes. We can get a feeling that
we are in an unfulfilling rut, and we need to get out!

It has been said that a rut is, “a grave with both ends kicked out”.
That’s a good description of the feeling we can have sometimes.
We can get the idea that we are in a grave rut, alone, and without
any anticipation of good things that will increase our joy of living.

We begin to search for something to brighten up our lives and give
us a new purpose; something that will bring joy into our lives, and
a reason to look forward to each new day; anything that will be an
encouragement to us as we arise each morning; something that will
fill us with peace and satisfaction at the end of each day.

The Psalmist tells us that all these things are available to us, but we
will have to intentionally change our focus, purpose, and goals. For
starters, we are told that we need to “glory in His holy name”. That
means we should ‘look forward’ to spending time with the Lord.

How does that help us? When we are fellowshipping with the Lord,
it’s difficult to dwell on the things that are dragging us down. The
Psalmist tells us that when we “seek the Lord” (which often means
a change of heart and focus for many of us), we have a reason to
“rejoice”. ‘Rejoicing’ sounds much better than ‘suffering through
the doldrums of life’, doesn’t it?

Think back to a time when you accomplished something that seemed
insurmountable. You felt like rejoicing, didn’t you? Not only did you
have a feeling of accomplishment, but you wanted to tell others about
what you did; and it created a bright moment for you. However, bright
moments can fade away quickly, can’t they?

That’s not the case when we “seek the Lord”. On the contrary, our
bright moments are lasting, and the more we seek the Lord, the
more we WANT to seek Him. The Psalmist tells us that we should
be relentless in our search for the Lord and His purpose for our
lives. He tells us to “seek His face always”.

Does that mean we become so ‘religious’ that we forfeit the things
we enjoy? Ask yourself this question:
    “Would God want to eliminate any ‘good’ things I enjoy?”

Of course not. God wants us to enjoy our lives when we are committed
to staying within His boundaries of righteousness. It is our responsibility
(with God’s help) to eliminate the things that pull us away from Him. We
should never forget that God loves us and wants to help us grow closer to
Him.

In fact, when He blesses us with salvation, He begins a sanctification
process of removing sinfulness from our lives, and transforming us
into a more righteous lifestyle. Even though it may require us to leave
our comfort zone, and even though it might be painful at times, it is for
our benefit, and it is initiated by our loving Father who knows what’s
best for us.
    And we know that in all things God works for the good
    of those who love him, who have been called according
    to his purpose.
    (Romans 8:28)

    And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement
    that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, “My
    son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose
    heart when He rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines the
    one He loves, and He chastens everyone He accepts as His son.”
    Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as His children.
    For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not
    disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not
    legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all.
    Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us
    and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit
    to the Father of spirits and live!
    They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but
    God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in
    His holiness.
    No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on,
    however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for
    those who have been trained by it.
    (Hebrews 12:5-11)

As we seek Him, we not only find reasons for rejoicing, but we also
discover that He gives us strength to deal with the pitfalls of life. The
more we feel His presence and sense the strength and encouragement
He provides, the more we realize our dependence on Him (and God
wants us to be dependent on Him, and not independent to ourselves).

Whenever the evil one wants to beat us down and keep us in a rut of
restlessness (and possibly depression), we have an Advocate who is
much stronger than him, and He will give us what we need to repel
these debasing attacks from Satan.

God blessed us with the Holy Spirit who will fight these battles for
us when we give Him more control of our lives. Knowing we can be
comforted and have courage because He is with us, and for us, gives
us a reason to rejoice and tell others about Him.

Does God want us to feel like we are in a depressing rut? NO.
Does He want us to drift away from Him? NO.
Does He want us to struggle with the challenges of life? NO.
Does He want us to be independent
and deal with our situations in our own strength? NO.

Does He want us to be focused on Him and His purpose for our lives? YES.
Does He want to encourage us and lift our spirits? YES.
Does He want to spend time with us and see our love for Him? YES.
Does He want to fellowship with us and be an integral part of our lives? YES.
Does He want us to be obedient to Him with our worship and tithes? YES.

Get the picture?
God wants us to enjoy everything that is good and to avoid all that is evil.
He wants to encourage us, give us a reason to rejoice, and spend time with
us. What a loving God we worship and serve!

Isaiah said,
    “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength;
      they shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run,
      and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint”
      (Isaiah 40:31)

ACTION:
Reserve some time each day over the next few weeks and read all
the Psalms. You will see someone who felt far away from the Lord,
felt remorse over his sins, and crawled out of his gloomy state to
discover a new and exciting purpose for living. It happened for him
because he ‘sought the Lord’ and, we can experience the same type
of results when we ‘seek the Lord’.

In Deuteronomy 4:29, we are told that,
    If we seek the Lord our God, we will find Him, if
    we seek Him with all our heart and with all our soul.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, forgive me for not taking seriously my
relationship with You. Forgive me for the times when I have
not given You top priority in my life. Change my desire from
selfishly seeking the things I want, to selflessly seeking You
and the things You want of me. Teach me how to rejoice in
Your presence and enjoy fellowshipping with You. Show me
how to fully appreciate the encouragement and guidance You
provide for me each day. Restore the brightness in my life and
lift me out of any darkness of despair. Thank You for Your love
for me, for Your gift of salvation, and for Your desire to see me
enjoy all that is good. I realize that my happiness and delight
depend on my relationship with You. Alter my thoughts so that
I will seek You above all else.”

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