Seeking Security? Seek Him.

Tuesday, July 7, 2020

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:33-34


Seeking Security? Seek Him.

As humans, one of our basic needs is security.  Some of us have learned that there is only so much security another human can offer, and even then, they will likely disappoint us at least once along the journey.  Others seek security in material possessions. Things. Money. Houses. Cars. Jobs. These things can provide a sense of security, but beware, it is as false as it gets. Yes, money in the bank creates security that we will be ok - we can buy food, pay our bills, and get needed health care. Of course, 2020 has taught us all a very different lesson.  Nothing is secure when a global pandemic hits, and then when it seems to be diminishing and we begin to think we can go back to some normalcy, rioting and looting happens, followed closely by a resurgence of the pandemic.  This year it seems nothing is safe, nothing is secure, and tomorrow is definitely not promised - if we even want to think about tomorrow! I believe we can hold the verses above a little closer in our hearts right now.

All of us want security in our lives but it seems we go looking for it in all the wrong places. Money can make the people who have it feel secure, powerful, and practically immortal. But they are deceived. Jesus told of the foolish man who tried to store up riches on earth only to find there’s no security in "things."  They’re too unstable.  We seek good people and build good relationships. We find the right person and marry her/him. We live in a good neighborhood and make friends. This makes us feel secure and safe. Yet, as some have experienced recently, this is all just temporary.

Paul wrote these words from jail – an imprisonment that would end with his martyrdom. That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.  2 Timothy 1:12 He embraced a religion that meant suffering and possibly even death and he was perfectly confident and secure in his decision. Maybe we’ve been missing something.  

What we’ve been missing has been available since the beginning of time - and it is right under our noses - or shall we say -we speak of it like we believe it, but do not always product actions to prove we believe it. 

Here are more lines from Paul in 2 Timothy 4 while he was in jail at Rome: Do your best to come to me quickly, for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me... v.9-17a  At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; ... But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, 16-17a  Paul was in jail but his friends and supporters were not. Their life went on, without him, yet he was secure. He felt safe even facing death.  But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me. Paul is telling us one of the most important things we will ever learn - that nothing is lasting, nothing is permanent but the Lord. And when everyone else has gone on with their lives, and you are stuck in a holding pattern, God will never leave you. No matter what happens, we must seek Him and hold to this hope, because it is the only true hope and the only one that is not dependent on circumstances. No matter where we are or what we are going through, we can know He never leaves us. His kingdom and His righteousness stand the test of time - especially when we feel the loneliest, or the most devastated, or the most ruined. By seeking His kingdom and His righteousness, we find the greatest and most valuable gifts and the most lavished love and mercy anyone could ever show us.

He is always there for us. The world around us is changing in alarming ways and at alarming speed this year.  He has not changed. He has not given up or relinquished His control. He is there. Seek Him in all things, trust and have hope in Him, and believe.

Uphold me that I may be safe, that I may have regard for Your statutes continually.
Psalms 119:117