Seeking His Kingdom (Part 1)

Published by christi on January 24, 2019January 24, 2019

My verse for 2019 is familiar  “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.” (Matthew 6:33 )

Easy to quote. Hard to practice. As I explore this verse, I discover places in my life that are still my territory, rather than the King’s domain.

Other parts of Jesus’ message on the hillside show me that to seek is:  to make something a matter of intense consideration; to pursue; to hunt for; to go after; to look for; to search out; to dig up.

Seeking His kingdom looked like this in yesterday’s journal entry:

“Thank You for reminding me that [having these questions] is part of seeking Your kingdom. I need to know the King’s commands and His instructions (Yes, there is a difference.) regarding every aspect of my life – every relationship, every task, every meal – whether I swim or dig or bicycle or dance! (I forgot about dancing!) …So much I desperately need You for!”

I decided to worship dance for exercise…

Later,  I wrote:

“Letting You choose the music I danced to was an eye-opening, heart-awakening experience. I opened up Player, and it started in the middle of ‘You Make Me Brave,’ followed by ‘Great is Thy Faithfulness,’ ‘Be Thou My Vision,’ ‘Silent Night,’ and ‘Your Grace Still Amazes Me.’ “

Every one of these wrapped and carried my sore, hard-beating heart in tender embrace. Every one was an echo of the prayers my heart had been praying, even if my mind didn’t know it.

I tend to go hard after things, to be hard on myself, and to not be aware of when I need to be cared for. I was stunned by the intimate connection God provided through these songs.

“I  weep in wonder at Your gentleness and tenderness toward me. I would not have chosen, nor known to choose any of these! I would have picked something energetic and punishingly aerobic, which would have been painful for some of my less-than-sturdy limbs. Thank You. It was lovely and just what I needed.”

Seeking His kingdom … His tender care was what became  mine.

Let me know what becomes yours through your pursuit of His kingdom.