First Surrender. Now Seek

In 2023, I learnt the concept of surrender.

Surrendering all personal intentions and needs and adding in the fear of the Lord. Trusting in Him and His best intentions and plans for us.

Embracing the act of not wanting personal ambitions and leaving it all in His hands.

With that revelation came immense lessons in gratitude — a sense of gratitude in whatever that happens as translated in the concept of Amor Fati

This is the simple concept and belief to accept life and to Experience Everything. Not to ask for a grand mission in life, but to believe that your life in itself is the mission and the grand mission. That life is in fact a relationship with Him and to stay close to Him via the Words of the Bible. To remove personal pride and emotion and to enact oneself without getting personal in all matters that occur, but to think through and and listen and observe and practice empathy in all that takes place.

On the first day of 2024 with inspiration and guidance from Night Watch service, my key word of 2024 is ‘Seek’.

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13

But instead of seeking personal needs and ambitions, I believe that it is an active seeking of His ways, and His guidance in our lives.

And in seeking Him, there is the element of sacrifice, in fasting, and in taking away needs of the flesh

““Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God- this is your spiritual act of worship.” Romans 12:1

God is giving us an outlet for us to do the same for Him. He NEEDS nothing, but we express our love for Him through our living sacrifices to Him. Considering God’s tremendous love and mercy, what should our response look like?

Offering ourselves as living sacrifices is to choose daily to lay down our own desires and to live our lives honoring and obeying Him. It is trusting in the perfect plans He has for us.

God has given us the best resources to achieve our goal- His written Word and the Holy Spirit! Paul continues in verse 2, telling us to “be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” That transformation is to include our entire body; beginning in the mind. The more time spent in His Word, the greater the transformation.

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17 NIV.

So in 2024, the plans I make are plans to Sacrifice myself in Seeking Him.

It is to deprive myself of my worldly pleasures, to empty my cup in order to receive Him and the Holy Spirit into me. To seek His guidance to build, and not just lie passively in surrender to receive His guidance and commands. To actively seek Him to prove my readiness and willingness to be used for greater purposes that He deems suitable for me.

To seek the fruits of the spirit is the first priority:

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. — Galatians 5:22–23, NIV

To be mindful of my worldly needs and to gain control over them, and then pray hard on what He wants me to do. To accept the tasks He sets forth in all my endeavours and acknowledge that all of which trials are the growth that He wants me to undergo.

At the core of Sacrifice and Seek would be the fast — the physical and the mental:

Dietary means — alcohol, meat, sugar, carbs, excessive eating.

Spiritual — ‘tee-tatainment’ that sacrifices bible reading time.

To live in the moment, and to rest in Him with focus on the task at hand, staying silent and residing in His plans with faith, actively seeking for His wisdom and guidance so that we can be utilized for His plans way beyond our imagination.

God bless and let’s continue Running For Christ.