Seeking the Giver – by Harriett Ford
"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart,” declares the Lord." (Jeremiah 29:13 NIV)
As a young wife, I read those words during a desperate time. My heart cried out, “Thy face will I seek.” My motive was to understand why God had not answered the prayerful longing of my heart for a child. I identified with the stories of Sarah and Hannah, both unable to conceive until God intervened.
In my quest to understand His perplexing denial, I began attending church services which I'd been neglecting; perhaps I would learn how to please Him enough that he would grant the desire of my heart. So I devoted myself to the study of His Word. Over the months, my focus began to change.
Somehow I learned to seek the Giver, not the gift. Alone in prayer, I reached what I call my Abraham moment. I released my deepest desire to Him—a genuine sacrifice—saying, “Father, in the name of Jesus, if I never have a child, it's okay. You are all I want and all I need in this life.” At that instant, His presence filled me with overwhelming joy. He seemed to whisper, “So many people seek Me for what I can do for them, instead of for Who I am.” Nine months after that prayer of surrender, like Abraham got his sacrifice back from the altar, I became the joyful mother of a beautiful baby girl. God is so good!
“Lord, may I always seek You, not for how I can get what I desire, but for Who You are and how You can get me to do what You desire.”
