“You have said, ‘Seek My face.’ My heart says to You, ‘Your face, Lord, do I seek.'” — Psalm 27:8 (ESV)
Alone With God
We all have a hunger to know why we’re here. We all possess an insatiable desire for love, passion and purpose. Maybe you’ve had a relationship with God for years. Maybe you’re still trying to figure out if God even exists or if He is knowable. Wherever you are in your journey with God, know this: God longs to satisfy your hunger. He knows everything about you. He’s counted every hair on your head and thinks about you more than the grains of sand (Psalm 139:18). And He loves you more than you could ever comprehend.
So great is His steadfast love for you that He has a perfect plan for every one of your days. He longs to transform your thoughts, emotions and actions with His loving kindness that your life may be filled with passion, purpose, satisfaction and the wonderful peace of His presence.
We all require transformation. We all need the freedom and healing that comes from a relationship with our Creator. And we serve a God of miraculous transformation. Scripture says, “God formed Man out of dirt from the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life. The Man came alive — a living soul!” (Genesis 2:7 MSG). Psalm 139:13 states that God knit you together in your mother’s womb.
You are fearfully and wonderfully made for relationship with your Heavenly Father (Psalm 139:14). Your Heavenly Father longs to bring about miraculous transformation every day of your life so that you would be increasingly marked by the powerful work of His presence.
So how does God desire to bring about transformation? What are His perfect plans for filling your days with passion, purpose and love?
God’s main avenue for transformation is through spending time alone with Him every day. No matter where you are in your relationship with God, time spent in the presence of your Creator receiving a tangible revelation of His steadfast love will be the catalyst to living a life transformed.
Just as a candle must be ignited with a flame to burn, so you must continuously encounter the fire of God’s love to live a transformed, joy-filled life. He is the only constant source that you have. You will only find lasting satisfaction through His nearness. Nothing else will supply all you need to live the life you truly desire.
That’s what First15 is all about. First15 was created to give you a practical resource to meet God every day. No matter how busy you are, you can set aside 15 minutes to connect with your Creator and Sustainer. God longs to meet with you. He waits patiently to spend time with you. Think of that! The Creator of the universe, of all things wonderful and good, is patiently waiting right now to spend time with you!
The choice of how you will spend this year is entirely up to you. I pray that you would be filled with the longing and strength to spend time with your Heavenly Father. I pray that this resource is helpful in connecting you to the Father and that your longings would be fully satisfied in meeting with Him.
God is a limitless ocean of grace and help. And all that’s necessary to receive from Him is some time, open hands and an open heart. God calls you His beloved and longs for you to know to greater depths “the breadth and length and height and depth” of His great love for you (Ephesians 3:18).
Spend some time in guided prayer receiving the love of God. Answer the call to seek His face as David did in Psalm 27, saying, “Your face Lord do I seek.”
— Craig Denison, First15
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