EARNESTLY SEEKING GOD
Romans 8:16
The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children.
Not long ago I was speaking to a non-believer about my faith. He asked me, "How do you know what the Bible says is true? How do you know Jesus is the son of God? Isn't that a bit far-fetched? Come on, isn't there some little tiny bit of doubt floating around in your head?"
My answer was Paul's statement from our passage today: "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit..." You see a long time ago, in a time of great personal distress and crisis I went to the mat with the Lord -- I struggled and wrestled with belief. My faith was being tested and to be honest I had some doubts. On my knees I cried out in anguish, "Lord, if you are real I need to know!" The Lord answered my prayer -- He gave me His comfort and I was forever changed. Ultimately God did not answer my prayer in exactly the way or timeframe I had imagined. But it didn't matter because from that moment on I have known for certain that God is both real and personal. ("The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children.")
I offered two additional scriptures for my non-believing acquaintance to consider -- Hebrews 11:6: "Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him," and Matthew 7:7: "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." I explained to him that the operative word in both of these Scriptures is "seek". Then I asked him, "Do you have a true desire to know God? Because if you do, God will reveal Himself to you. All you have to do is ask and seek -- then you will find. It's guaranteed." Unfortunately, my non-believing acquaintance was more interested in debating God's existence rather than in earnestly seeking Him
My answer was Paul's statement from our passage today: "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit..." You see a long time ago, in a time of great personal distress and crisis I went to the mat with the Lord -- I struggled and wrestled with belief. My faith was being tested and to be honest I had some doubts. On my knees I cried out in anguish, "Lord, if you are real I need to know!" The Lord answered my prayer -- He gave me His comfort and I was forever changed. Ultimately God did not answer my prayer in exactly the way or timeframe I had imagined. But it didn't matter because from that moment on I have known for certain that God is both real and personal. ("The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children.")
I offered two additional scriptures for my non-believing acquaintance to consider -- Hebrews 11:6: "Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him," and Matthew 7:7: "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." I explained to him that the operative word in both of these Scriptures is "seek". Then I asked him, "Do you have a true desire to know God? Because if you do, God will reveal Himself to you. All you have to do is ask and seek -- then you will find. It's guaranteed." Unfortunately, my non-believing acquaintance was more interested in debating God's existence rather than in earnestly seeking Him
When was the last time you sought after God? How does your approach to life's daily challenges reflect your faith? Do you allow the Lord to comfort you in times of distress or are you still trying to manage your own affairs? How bad does it need to be before you call upon the Lord? Don't wait any longer. No problem is too big or too small for the Lord.
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