21 Days of Fasting and Prayer

Day 11

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-13

These are the same verses we looked at yesterday, but there was something else I wanted to address.  The later portion of these verse speaks about calling upon God and seeking Him.  It is paired with the assurance that God hears and we can find Him.  The linchpin to this is the qualification of “all your heart”.

When I cry out to God, do I really cry out to God with all my heart or do I cry out with my selfish desires?  There have been times where I was overwhelmed by the situation and desperately called out to God.  But my prayer was really about God doing something for me.  I could not handle the situation.  It had gotten beyond my control.  So, in desperation, I called out to God.  But, what I wanted was for God to do what I wanted to be done.

I am not saying that we should not call out to God about desperate situations or that God does not intervene at those times.  Yet what I desired was an end to the suffering and difficulty.  Jeremiah is talking about calling out to God, he is not urging us to trust in what the power of God can do. 

When God answers my desperate prayers, He reveals His power over the situation.  He affirms His love for me through His intervention.  But the greater purpose is not for me to have the life I want.  The greater purpose is to know God.  He reveals something about Himself so I can know Him.

If I desperately call out to God and seek Him with all my heart, then I want God more than an answer to my dilemma.  It means that I would rather have God and suffer in my situation than to have a comfortable life and not really know who God is. 

A fast is a denial of things I desire in order to gain a greater knowledge of who God is.  A fast is a reminder that my life is not built upon the things I give up, but on God.  My greatest desire must be to know God and to be in His presence.  This is incredibly difficult because I am addicted to my comfort, my pleasure, and a plan I have for my life. 

If He chooses to change things around me, I will praise Him for His gracious care.  However, if things get worse, I will cling to Him all the more.  Because, I need God more than what God can do for me.

Prayer:  Father God, You have promised me that when I call on You, You will listen to me.  Thank You for listening when I pray.  You have said that I can find You, if I seek you with all my heart.  I want to find You today and every day.  I want to know You.  Forgive me for the times my fears and selfish desires have made me desire what You can do for me more than knowing You.  I lay my plans and desires down at Your feet.  I trust you know what is best.  I want You more than my plans.  Lead me in a way where I see You, I hear You, and I learn more about who You are.