Chasing dreams, possessions, and power seem to be the things we run after but never catch enough of to satisfy. We chase things the world has to offer, things that temporarily captivate. Too late, we see it all run through our wrinkled fingers.
And then, we wish we ran after something we could actually hold onto.
David had a few dreams of his own, plenty of possessions, experienced the power of a king . . . but the man after God’s own heart chased after the presence of God. He messed up often and totally, but knew Whose heels to follow hard after to help him while tripping over humanity.
My soul follows hard after You. Psalm 63:8
Once I believed I could outrun the Father while He relentlessly chased after me on my dark path. Wrong.
Too long after, I recognized He was there but foolishly believed I had to chase Him down. Not with a light jog but a full sprint, so that maybe I’d catch enough of Him to get it right. Still wrong.
We need to desire more of God’s presence more than the things we chase after to try to fill the God-gap. A daily chase, not a Sunday catch up.
We see how present God wants to be in His children’s lives in the beginning of His story. Unfortunately, sin created the hiding place where we can be seen. With one hand on a fig leaf and one hand wiping fruit off their face – they couldn’t stand near Holiness.
And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from His presence among the trees of the garden. Genesis 3:18
Sin – the great divide. Jesus – the great bridge who takes us back to Presence.
From the beginning of time, we have been able to experience the presence of God, but we hide from His nearness, trying desperately to ignore the rustling of the trees.
Chased by grace. Caught by grace.
We can experience His nearness by simply standing in what we already have.
In-dwelt. We don’t have to chase dreams and power – we already possess more than we can think or imagine – in Jesus.
My prayer for you and for me – this day.
Verna
Love the grace of God! It’s unending. 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
Definitely un-ending . . . hope to see you soon, Lisa!
Great word. So good to see you again. Hope you are healing.
Thanks Hannah! It was so great to catch up with you on your ministry journey 🙂 Yes, getting better.
Verna, So grateful for the rich inheritance we already have right where we are. Truly the lines fall in pleasant places for us when Jesus moves into the temple of our hearts. He’s the One who makes the difference in our lives with our glad surrender. Great post! Thanks for sharing.
In the temple of our heart – where we run for solace. Love this – glad surrender. Thanks, Glenda!
Amen. So true, Verna. May we each take this message into our innermost being, and keep it in our heart daily. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you for continued encouragement, Laura.