Jeremiah 29:13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.
Today I knew exactly what passage to find, because my search came from my mind, and the message has everything to do with me. Most days I receive a Word from the Lord without subject or context. I do a word search to find what He means for me to do with the results.
There are two distinct word searches that occur, one is from the mind and the other is from the heart. This one is from my mind, my experiences and with an earnest desire to help others to understand me a little better. If by any strange coincidence it helps anyone else, praise God.
When I began this long journey with God I had no idea what I was doing. It had been years since I had attended church services and even longer since I attended Sunday School. My memories lead me as best they could, as weak and frail as they are. Not much has changed in that arena, in fact my memory is weaker now because I don’t rely on it as much.
John 15:4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.
It took me a long time to realize His abiding presence. My mind thought that memorization of scripture is all that was required. I relied on a fallible instrument. A craftsman is only as good as his instruments.
Psalm 119:11 I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
I thought that storing His Word in my heart was only good for avoiding sin. That is what I get for thinking rather than experiencing. Discovering the will of God cannot be reasoned out. His will is discovered by revelation from the heart where the Holy Spirit dwells by faith.
Reading everything that has been said about the bible from learned doctors of theology and gifted teachers is head knowledge. It is not heart knowledge.
Jeremiah 17:10 “I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds.”
If the Lord does this, we need to follow His example. Search our hearts and test our minds to determine which of the two directs our path and our deeds upon the Way.