JOURNEY 201¦1 ‘You Are It’

When I was a kid, we would play hide and seek in the neighborhood. And for me, it was always much more fun to do the hiding than it was to do the seeking – probably because I only had to hide myself when ‘hiding’ but had to look for everyone when I was ‘the seeker’. After I had my turn looking for everyone, there was a great satisfaction in telling someone else that it was their turn to search, in proclaiming, 'You are it!'

Last week, I wrote about us seeking the LORD – how He promises to be found by us if we will seek Him with our whole heart. Yet there is as great – and even greater – joy in knowing that God Almighty is the Ultimate Seeker.

• ‘Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” Genesis 2:9
• ‘Now the Angel of the LORD found her [Hagar] by a spring of water in the wilderness … And He said ... where have you come from, and where are you going?” Genesis 16:7-8
• ‘Now the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” I Samuel 3:10
• ‘Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen these.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all the young men here?”’ I Samuel 16:10-11
• ‘And there he went into a cave, and spent the night in that place; and behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”’ I Kings 19:9
• ‘For thus says the LORD God: “Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out.’ Ezekiel 34:11
• ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us ...’  John 1:1,14
• ‘And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.’ Revelation 22:12

Yes, He can be found seeking us out from Genesis to Revelation. In the garden of Eden He sought out Adam, even after there was a sin-introducing violation of God’s instruction. From Egyptian handmaids, to His chosen prophets, to selecting a king - He can be found searching out His people and coming to them. In Ezekiel He acknowledges that He will seek after His own. And in the New Testament, we find Jesus coming to dwell among us with a promise that He is coming again.

He seeks ... from beginning to end and everywhere in between.

He asks us where we are, not because He does not know, but so that we can acknowledge where we are and know that He takes an intensely personal interests in each of us. He sought us out and so desperately wanted to be near us that He sent Jesus to dwell among us. And He is not willing that any should perish – desiring that all would accept the free gift of salvation made available to us through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

His love for us is insatiable! One would think that He would have stopped at the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. Yet, He keeps on pursuing and drawing us near and embracing us.

It is great to seek Him in this journey. But, what a joy it is to know that He continues to seek after each and every one of us. I am so glad that He sought me out and that He still seeks me out on a consistent basis. Jesus, You Are Truly It … The Ultimate Seeker.

Thank You for loving us so much!