FEAR

He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;

He will also hear their cry and will save them.

Psalms 145:19 (NASB)

Fear doesn’t have to mean “scary.” The dictionary says one of the meanings of fear is reverence: respect or awe for something or somebody. This is the meaning of fear when applied toward God. We are to respect Him. If you stop and think about God as having created the planets, the stars, the mountains that surround us and everything else that exists, we should fear Him. After all, couldn’t He simply wipe out the very things that He created?

Why then do we sometimes act as though what He says doesn’t matter? Why do we ignore His wishes for our lives? Are we not fearful enough of God’s awesome power?

I’m not implying that the only reason we should obey God is out of fear for Him, but merely that it would behoove us (and perhaps modify our behavior) if we considered His true greatness.

Even though God is to be feared, He would prefer our obedience out of love for Him. Jesus said, if you love me, you will keep my commandments (John 14:15) and God loved every single one of us in this world so much that he sent Jesus, His only begotten Son to die for our sins (John 3:16).

Don’t underestimate His power for one day EVERY knee WILL bow and EVERY tongue WILL confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9-11 - emphasis mine).

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

NEAR

The LORD is near to all who call upon Him,

To all who call upon Him in truth.

Psalms 145:18 (NASB)

Lord, if you will make me rich, I’ll follow your ways. If you’ll do this one special thing for me, then I’ll always do what you ask of me.

Hmmm. That doesn’t sound terribly sincere, does it? How can we expect to be “near” God if we are simply seeking ways to please ourselves?

Do you want to be close to God? Then seek Him in all sincerity, with integrity, honor and without deception. He sees you as you really are, anyway, so don’t think you can “put anything over” on Him.

Look back on the past year…did you get closer to God? Think about times you have been close to God… Is there anything more calming or more reassuring than being close to the Creator of the Universe?

As we approach the new year, remember God’s promise to you:

You will seek Me and find Me

when you search for Me with all your heart.

Jeremiah 29:13 (NASB)

I love those who love me;

And those who diligently seek me will find me.

Proverbs 8:17 (NASB)

Seek Him diligently, in truth and with all your heart. He will not disappoint.

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

RIGHTEOUS

The LORD is righteous in all His ways

And kind in all His deeds.

Psalms 145:17 (NASB)

Sure, bad things happen, but we can’t blame them on God. He rescues us from the grips of sin, from the crumbling world around us and from ourselves.

We can try to do things on our own, without Him, but as Isaiah said,

We are all infected and impure with sin.

When we display our righteous deeds,

they are nothing but filthy rags.

Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall,

and our sins sweep us away like the wind.

Isaiah 64:6 (NLT)

God alone is perfect, holy, righteous, just and

HE LOVES YOU AND ME!

As we wind down the year 2007, look back and thank Him for all the good deeds He has done in your life. Look forward to all the good things He will bring into your life in the coming year as you keep your eyes and attention focused on Him.

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

For unto you

is born this day

in the city of David

a Saviour,

which is Christ the Lord.

Luke 2:11 (KJV)