The Daily Word - Seek God

He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord .
Proverbs 18:22 NIV
http://bible.com/111/pro.18.22.NIV

 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Matthew 6:33 NIV
http://bible.com/111/mat.6.33.NIV

 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
Colossians 3:3‭-‬4 NIV
http://bible.com/111/col.3.3-4.NIV

Many of us desire a relationship, the vision God has is for families to be restored, for man and woman to be one. It's evidenced all over Genesis.

It's commonly known that if you want to treasure, you have to dig deep for it. It's also commonly known that even when you find it, you need to open it to access what's inside.

So, with that in mind I want to get us thinking on this.
Brothers - How earnestly are you seeking God?
Sisters - How hidden in Christ are you? How accessible are you?

Seek first the kingdom and all things shall be added unto you. It's very clear what we have to. If we are not seeking God, how do we expect to find favour?

The Daily Word - Can you Love whilst Hurting

'Despite going through pain and torture, he went to the cross to show how much he loves me and you'

Some time ago, God asked a question - Do you still love people even though they hurt you? . I had to think a long time about that, it was something that had me stuck for a while until I finally realised why.

There's this mentality that some people have which is this - If someone hurts or lets me down, there is no way I can trust someone else or even love someone else. Looking from the outside that could be totally acceptable but let's take a step back and really consider whether it's the correct idea.
Let's look it at from the perspective of Jesus.

On the third day when he rose again, you would imagine that he had some scores to settle. His first port of call was to appear before Peter and have a heart to heart. That was a poignant moment, even though Jesus was hurt by Peter he still showed love by commissioning Peter and then he appeared to the rest of the disciples.

In a modern day context, you would describe a person who did that as quite mindless but ask yourself this - How many time has God forgiven you? How many times has God shown his love to you.
Even though we hurt God on a daily basis, he still shows us his love.

Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. - Matthew 11:28-30

Wow, so what Jesus basically said is to give him all our troubles and exchange them for his yoke so we will find rest for our soul. What a huge statement, a statement of sincere love for me and you. We sinned against him, got him tortured but yet he is willing to take away our sins and forget them no more.

This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: "HE HIMSELF TOOK OUR INFIRMITIES AND CARRIED AWAY OUR DISEASES - Matthew 8:17

Holding on to the past, holding on to those memories of the people that hurt you and let you down, the memories of being abused and neglected, the memories of being cheated on, all of this will weigh you down and keep you down. Give it to Jesus, he is willing to take your burden and wants to give you his yoke so you can be free and be able to move on. 

So, let me ask this question again - 'Do you still love people even though they hurt you? How will you respond...................................