Award Winning GENESIS SCHOOL OF MUSIC

➡️The Israelites, God’s chosen people, had been taken captive to Babylon by the evil king Nebuchadrezzar. He’s the same King that took Daniel, the man from the Lions den, as well as his friends Shadrack, Meshak and Abednego, into captivity. They were slaves to a foreign people, so they were not in a good place. Through the prophet Jeremiah, God told them to settle there, saying he would answer their prayer for deliverance in 70 years.  Imagine asking God for something, and God said, “Yes – in 70 years”.  This was definitely not the answer the people of God were hoping for. So while they were in captivity, in a bad place, is where God gave them the promise in Jeremiah 29:11, “I know the plans I have for you, plans to give you a hope and a future.”  Then in verse 13, God says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

In Deuteronomy 28, God had told the Israelites if they do what is right, they will be blessed, “coming in and going out”. He goes on in the same chapter saying, “If they do not do what is right, they would not be blessed. The Israelites was not doing what was right, and Jeremiah had already told them if they did not turn from their unfaithfulness, they would be judged by God. They brought this on themselves. And yet God still told them in the middle of their pain that he would come to them.

In the same way, no matter who we are or what we’ve done, God gives us this same promise – “If we seek Him, we will find Him – if we seek Him with all our heart.”

1…Finding God STARTS WITH US.  If you feel like God is hiding from you, like he’s silent for some reason, he wants you to seek him. He’s playing the childhood game “hide and seek” with you.  The word seek in the original language means to search out, specifically in worship and prayer.  Even if you are in a place of captivity, lift your hands and bring God a sacrifice of praise; this means it may not feel good, it may not feel right, but still we worship. Then in your worship, be honest with God in prayer, bringing your request to him. Philippians 4:6, says, “Do not be anxious about anything, instead pray about everything”.  This is called seeking God. 

2…Finding God is a GUARANTEE.  If we seek him, we will find him.  In the original language, the word find is “matsa” – it means whatever you’re looking for will certainly come, it will appear and prove to exist.  Eventually, we will find what we’re looking for.  I love Isaiah 30:18 – it says, “The Lord will wait for us, so that he may be gracious”.  When my children were younger and we would play “hide and seek”, for example, I would hide and I couldn’t wait for them to find me. I would even start making noises giving them hints, because I wanted the joy of them finding me.  I would never hide in a place where I couldn’t be found. It’s the same with God, he’s a good father, He wants to be with us – if we seek Him, we WILL find Him. 

3…Finding God is a PROCESS.  The first word seek in this verse means to search out as if in worship and prayer. The second word seek, in verse 13, is more of a covenant word, meaning to inquire, investigate, to seek earnestly, as in a judicial pursuit.  Think of an investigator – doing everything he can to find the truth.  In the same way, we will find God, if we seek him (investigate, go after, earnestly search for) with all of our heart, which is the inner core of who we are, the seat of thought, will, consciousness and emotion. 

Again, no matter who you are, what you’ve done or where you’ve been, if you seek the Lord with all of your heart, everything that you are, you will find him.  I promise you that. It’s in the Bible, and the Bible is always right.