A VITAL NECESSITY. Just when
does God become a vital necessity to us?
Somehow even the air we breathe that keeps us alive can become a thing
taken for granted. But remove the availability
of air – and we will have no life. So
how vital is that necessity to our physical lives? And WHO gives us that gift and
provision? None other than the One who
also longs to have us understand that His presence in our lives is as vital a necessity
to our spiritual well-being as the very air we breathe! More so, actually.
Why is it that people forget to “breathe God in” when they feel
as if life is sailing along quite smoothly?
When everything is falling into place?
When things are going their way?
When all is laughter and the struggles of life have been placed on the
shelf of denial? Could it be that we are
raising our own abilities above our desire or need for God?
And why is it that in the moments that take our breath away, we
finally pay attention to the fact that we cannot breathe without God alive
within us? That we cannot survive if He
is not alive in our hearts? When our most
precious ones disappear from our sight and leave this life behind … we can
barely breathe. When crushing
disappointments come from any angle … we feel like the life is being squeezed
from us. When relationships lack love,
honor and respect, or turn cold and sour ... we feel as if we cannot even
muster another breath to go on. But it
is in these very moments that we finally give in and cry out to God for “spiritual
air” so that our faith stays alive. That’s
all well and good – but “what if” we learned the life-giving technique of “breathing
God in” - in every circumstance? How
much different would our lives really be?
Listen to this scripture:
“Then you will seek Me, inquire
for, and require Me (as a vital necessity) and find Me when you search for Me
with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13,
The Amplified Bible) Somehow, that
tells me that when I choose this “breathing God-connection” and apply it to every
part of my life, I will discover how God meant for me to live! Every day.
Every hour. Every moment. In every circumstance. Whether in joy. Or in sorrow.
Whether I have plenty. Or not
enough. His Word says I need to “require”
Him. That sounds pretty mandatory to me,
and for good reason!
Let’s see if we can make clearer sense of this. Deuteronomy, chapter 4, verses 29-30 share
the same message as the above verse in Jeremiah. It helps us clarify the fact that WE,
ourselves, have much to do with how this breathing thing turns out. We can either hyperventilate and suck for
air, or we can purposefully choose to breathe in God as the vital necessity
that He is. IF we seek God, inquire for
God, and require as VITAL NECESSITY our Lord God, then we WILL find HIM – IF –
we really, truly SEEK HIM with ALL our HEART and MIND and SOUL and LIFE! That leaves nothing out. You see, if air is needed by our body to keep
living, then all the more God is needed by our heart and soul, our very life …
to keep living. As believers, we should
be just as concerned about maintaining our spiritual lives as our physical
lives. About breathing in God, more than
breathing in air. Breathing in God will
renew us, refresh us, and bring us to the lives of victory and triumph that
most people just wish for. You see,
breathing in God should not be an option for His children. His Word says that it is something we must
do; it is necessary. Vitally so. It should be a spiritual compulsion. We should experience the need to breathe in
God as an urgent desire, until we awaken to the realization that there is no
other way to live. Not if we want to
live in obedience to Him. What was that
verse again? Let’s memorize it, dear
friends, and live it … breathing God into every part of our lives. Every part!
REMEMBER . . .
“Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require
Me (as a vital necessity)
and
find Me when you search for Me with all
your heart.”
~ Jeremiah 29:13
Serving Christ Joyfully . . .
Pastor Doug and Debbie
