Digging Deeper

“If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me”.

Jeremiah 29:13

I have a few questions for you to consider as we chat—be honest with yourself.

Do you crave to learn more about God’s heart?

Are seeking Him with intentionality?

Have you set your heart in a posture to receive what He wants to speak to you?

This week I have solely been focusing on positioning my heart in such a way to hear from God. Although in the past, it felt as if I was already doing so—the fruit just wasn’t evident. This shows me I was doing something incorrectly. However, this week the Lord has been doing a work on my heart. He taught me what it looked like to seek Him with intention, and I want to share it with you.

The Lord promises to draw near to us when we choose to draw near to Him and seek Him with our entire being. My prayers have consisted of my heart posture and for me to fall more in love with Jesus each and every day. This week the Lord has been answering these prayers in such a beautiful way. My mindset has shifted; the way I view my quiet time has changed. The Lord has set this fire in my soul—where I crave to know His heart without receiving anything in return. Multiple times throughout the day I find myself just desiring to sit with my Father and learn more about His sweet, sweet heart—I’m not coming in with the mindset of what I can personally get out of it. Friends, this is where I found true freedom; a true connection with the Lord, where He spoke to me in such a tender way. This is how we seek with intention. The Lord has been caring for my heart this week and has instilled inside of me the desire and craving to know more of Him. I pray the exact same over you. It wasn’t until my heart posture changed, that the Lord revealed to me one of His promises over my life.

I was laying in my bed the other night just wanting nothing else, but to sit in the presence of my Creator. I pulled out my Bible and turned on some worship music and just started praying. I didn’t come with an ulterior motive, I truly just wanted to feel connected to Jesus. I craved to know more of His heart, so I began to read His Word. I felt a tug on my heart to read Jeremiah 29 and I am so glad I listened to the nudge of the Holy Spirit.

I’ve opened up about this before, but not in much detail. When I medically withdrew from school, I also lost the two people in my life who felt like home to me. Due to my mental struggles and me making poor choices, they decided to set a boundary for themselves in order to stay healthy. This boundary consisted of me no longer being allowed to live with them. Our relationship has been strained in a way and it’s been a rough time grieving that loss. They’re still there for me; they still love me, but things feel different and my heart is still angry and sad about it. The Lord knows exactly how my heart has been feeling and He wanted to speak to me because I chose to set aside myself to get to know more of Him. He wanted to care for my heart in that moment, giving me such beautiful words to hold on to and feel comforted by.

The Lord spoke to me through Jeremiah 29:10-14,

“This is what the Lord says: “You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again. ¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. ¹² In those days when you pray, I will listen. ¹³ If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. ¹⁴ I will be found by you,” says the Lord. “I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and will bring you home again to your own land.”

Jeremiah 29:10-14

The Lord used this passage to comfort me in my time of grieving and loss. I don’t think He meant that one day I’ll live with them again, but I believe He wanted me to know that one day, our relationship will be mended and that the bridges that have been burned can be restored. One day, I’ll have my people again—my “home”. The Lord took this time of me intentionally seeking Him to care for my heart in such a beautiful and tender way. Friends, I believe He wants to do the same for you.

So, I’ll ask again.

Do you crave to learn more about God’s heart?

Are seeking Him with intentionality?

Have you set your heart in a posture to receive what He wants to speak to you?

Jesus loves you and so do I,

-Malia