Chaser or Seeker?

One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. Psalm 27:4

My mind is perplexed and prone to ponder. It has been known to wander to things that I should not dwell upon. I have been guilty of wondering about the things I can’t understand. My flesh and bone get the best of me most days.

I know the desire of my heart. I love Psalm 27:4. I am a God seeker. I was once a God chaser. I realized he can’t be caught. I became very frustrated. I kept hearing people talking about him and things he had done but I just couldn’t seem to catch up with him. I was always a day or two behind. I enjoyed seeing what all he had done but I wanted to be a part of the experience. I read the God Chasers book. I loved the book. I thought for sure it was describing me. I thought it was a good thing to be a God Chaser. Then God showed me a chaser and a seeker was similar but very different. I got tired of hearing everyone else talk about him. I wanted to know him for myself.

Chase is the act of chasing or pursuing. It is derived from the French chasse, with the additional meaning of hunting. Meaning the thing being pursued is trying to get away from you.

Seek means to go in search of : look for : to try to discover: to ask for : request: to try to acquire or gain : aim at: to be sought. It is waiting to be found not caught.
God isn’t hiding or running from us. He is always the same and waiting to be found. He wants us to seek him and he wants us to love him. It takes great diligence to keep seeking him. Our ways are not his ways and he doesn’t always respond the way we would like him to or on our timetable.
It is important to purpose in my heart to live for him. By deciding that in advance I can focus all my thoughts and actions according to his Word. He wants us to know him and to be obedient to his commandments. He never runs away from us or leaves us. The old saying goes, “If God feels far away, you moved.”
The bible says:

Proverbs 8:17 (NASB-U) "I love those who love me; And those who diligently seek me will find me.

1 Chron. 16:10-11 (NASB-U) Glory in His holy name; Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad. Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face continually.

2 Chron. 15:2 (NASB-U) and he went out to meet Asa and said to him, "Listen to me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: the Lord is with you when you are with Him. And if you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you.


Continually and diligently seek him. He will let you find him.


John 1:38 (NASB-U) And Jesus turned and saw them following, and said to them, "What do you seek?"

So when ask, What do you seek? What is your answer? I am pondering on this today. What do I seek? I seek the Lord. What does that mean?

I hear so many people who say they are looking for something in their Christian life. They keep looking or chasing after it. They believe they find it by having an emotional feeling or by being part of a group of other people who have found him. They enjoy their overflow. They settle. They are searching for it in churches. They go from one to another looking for it. Activities and programs can bring happiness and a good feeling but is that what we should seek? Does it keep us from seeking the Lord? We must seek him continually and diligently at church and at home. Everyday and not just on Sunday. I don’t want it, I want him. He can’t be bought or sold and He can’t be produced like some product. Only God can give his presence to his people. When we believe it is the churches responsibility to produce God’s presence then we are not realizing that each person makes up the church. A church is only as alive as the people who attend. God decides where He makes himself known. This puts pressure on the church when people believe the church can and should make IT happen for them. That is not possible. It comes from each individual’s heart. A heart that is seeking after the Lord will find him. This explains why some are satisfied while others are not. It is each person’s responsibility to seek for themselves. I believe the churches responsibility is to worship the Lord; teach the Word accurately,to pray for one another and serve one another and our communities. My concern for myself and others is that we settle for a feeling or some selfish need we have to be met and we miss getting to know him and to make him known.

So are you a God seeker or a God Chaser? Are you chasing after something you can’t catch or seeking the ONE who wants to be found?