Home » Archives » 30. January 2012
Back to the Basics
January 30, 2012 
In school, whenever a complex problem is thrown to us by our professor, whether it’s in math or science or social science, the first words of encouragement you could hear from him is ‘i know you know this, just go back to the basics’. And there you are, recalling what you’ve learned some years ago, digging up the foundations and slowly getting the solution to the problem.
In life, the same is true. When life-changing decisions come and life-threatening problems arise, the steps to gettting the solution is simple. We just need to pause and get back to the basics. For Christians, it’s the popular yet mostly forgotten verse in Matthew 6.
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Matthew 6:33
Why do I say it’s mostly forgotten? Well, it’s not because it’s too hard to memorize or it’s irrelevant but because tendencies are, people won’t really remember to practice it because it’s too simple and cliched. The verse tells you to just seek God and then you will be given every thing! The problem with us sometimes is that we tend to look for complex answers to complex problems even when in fact, the right answer is just simple.. We love the idea of solving puzzles and mysteries. In our christian walk, we focus more on the heavy stuff, those that concern apologetics, evangelism, and the like, which can cause us to overlook the basics of Christianity. Now for some who do remember and practice this verse, problems may arise when they concentrate on the last part of the message, rather than focusing on the first which is essentially the highlight and gist of the verse. Instead, they concentrate on what they’d get in doing so rather than the act of seeking God itself, which is actuallly the opposite of what the verse is trying to convey. They’re missing the point. They’re missing a lot. They’re missing everything. 
Now what does it mean to seek God? The word seek comes from the greek word ‘zeteo’ which means in order to find; require, demand, crave, demand something. Seeking God means craving for His presence. We demand , we require to get to experience Him. Moreover, seeking God is more than a feeling, it is a responsibility.
The LORD looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.
Psalms 14:2
God wants us to seek Him. He wants us to put Him first in every thing that we do, in every decision, in every struggle and suffering. Why? Because we cannot thrive without Him. God as the God of the universe has an active rule over His creation, over us. He has His way of doing and being right. With Him, nothing could go wrong. He wants to help us. He wants to lead us. But He can only do all these things if we allow Him to.
Next question, how do we seek him?
- 1. We must look with all our heart and soul
But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Deuteronomy 4:29
We must declutter your lives. The enemy uses distractions and makes us busy so we may forget to prioritize God over all things. This is his way of deceiving us. Once we give in, sooner or later you’ll realize you’ve gone far from God’s will for you.
- 2. We must declutter your lives. The enemy uses distractions and makes us busy so we may forget to prioritize God over all things. This is his way of deceiving us. Once we give in, sooner or later you’ll realize you’ve gone far from God’s will for you.
- 3. Read your bible. This is one practical step that we must never ever forget. The bible gives us the ability to hear from God through His words. The bible is our weapon and we must not lose sight of it.
- 4. Pray consistently. Prayer changes things for God’s words are powerful.
Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place?He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. [Or swear falsely]. He will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God his Saviour.Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob. [Two Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac (see also Septuagint); most Hebrew manuscripts face, Jacob] Selah
Psalm 24:3-6
So whenever we are in a challenging situation and the problem’s too complex to comprehend, the default protocol should be to go back to the basics. Go back and seek God and ask for His help knowing full well that He is willing and able to give you the answers and put an end to your every suffering. Be blessed!
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Photo credits: (1) Jonnecker Kingsu
