Back to the Basics

2 Chronicles 7:14 : "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

As a teacher, I look forward to the start of a new school year. I spend many days sometimes even weeks in preparation for the upcoming year. Part of my routine includes going back to school before it starts and cleaning up the debris left over from the end of the year and summer repairs. I carefully examine old files to identify which things I actually need or what is simply material that clutters my future progress. There are always huge stacks and piles of garbage that I must cast aside. While I clear out the physical material of the past, I also take mental inventory. I consider what worked, what didn't, how I handled my kids, what I could have done better, and what I must not ever do again. At the end of the two to three grueling weeks that I spend getting ready for the new year, I resolve that no matter what occurred the prior year, I must return to working on being a good teacher and get back to the basics, things that I know will work and will carry me through the trials of my new journey.

Just like in our natural lives, we are to take inventory of where we are spiritually. We must examine our spiritual lives, noticing times that we lapse in prayer, reading the scripture, praising and thanking God. Sometimes when we look at our lives we observe places that the enemy has crept in and wrecked havoc because we have failed to obey the word of God. The Bible says that if we, the children of the Lord, would humble ourselves, pray, seek God, and turn from our evil doings, then God will hear us, forgive us, and solve our problems. That is quite a process. How many times have we searched for areas in our lives that need to be humbled? It doesn't say that we are to prove whether we think we are right in situations or relationships, but we are supposed to be humble before God and submit all things to him in prayer. When we earnestly and diligently seek the face of God, we get more than we ever dreamed. But sometimes instead of seeking God's face, we seek God's blessings, healing, prosperity, and other things. As a child of the King, you are supposed to seek his face, and you are supposed to take great joy in being in God's presence. The more that we seek our Father's face, we are able to resist the tactics of the devil and refuse to let anything hinder our spirits from serving and pleasing God.

It is then that God hears us. As long as we are praying to God trying to show Him why we don't deserve the attacks that come our way. We keep God as a sounding board, rather than seeking his love and his presence. God is a God of his word, and when he commands us to live and operate in a certain way, He will not change his way of doing things. If there are areas of your life that are troubling you, if you are in need of a blessing or miracle, then obey the word of God. Get back to the basics. Quit throwing your own pity party, and seek God with your whole heart, expecting nothing more than to be with Him and to receive His love. Watch God move on your behalf. When we focus on what is on God's heart, Jesus focuses on what is on our hearts.
Be Blessed!