August 18, 2003 Monday
Responding to God's Heart

"When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek." - Psalm 27:8

We have all been quick to doubt God when we don't hear from Him as we would desire, but why do we expect God to answer our calls if we aren't answering His? Maybe you have prayed as David did in verse 7, "Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me", but even in the midst of your prayer you've found yourself entrapped in one of the pitfalls we've all fallen into - expecting God to clearly show us His heart when we are withholding from Him our very own. David prayed in Psalm 63:8 saying, "My soul followeth HARD after thee". Many of us say that we would seek harder for God if we had the time and energy, yet we are much more willing to invest our time and energy into ourselves and others. Seeking God is not a quick, one-shot experience... it's a consistent lifestyle produced by a devoted heart and soul that is totally in love with Jesus Christ. David knew that God would reveal Himself unto him because his heart was like a ten-ton rock falling off the tip of a mountain peak, following hard after God with unstoppable strength.

"I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD." (vs. 13) David also knew that God would respond to him because he "believed to see". We say that we have faith in Him, yet our faith is often defined as "seeing to believe" - and because of our unbelief He hides His face from us (see vs. 9) and we are left sitting at the gate spiritually blinded. How "hard" are you seeking and responding to God's heart? Is your search for His heart led out by unstoppable strength pouring out from yours? When God says to you, "Seek ye my face" does your heart respond, "Thy face, LORD, will I seek"?