By Tamara Irons ...
Have you ever wondered what God’s face looks like? The title of today’s sermon made me think of that song- “What if God Was One of Us?” Or, that other song- “I See the God in You.” There are probably plenty of pop songs written with the same spirit… that God is somehow right here… traveling among us… and if we just look closely enough, the thing we all crave, God’s presence, will be clear. But, sometimes we don’t have enough resources to pay attention.
There are days when I walk into the service feeling completely ready to follow Jesus, to take direction from God, to be comforted by the Holy Spirit. Today was not one of those days, which is why John Maury’s message, Seeking God’s Face, was absolutely necessary.
John focused on two verses from Psalm 27.
Verse 4:
One thing I asked of the LORD,
that will I seek after:
to live in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the LORD,
and to inquire in his temple.
Verse 8
“Come,” my heart says, “seek his face!”
Your face, LORD, do I seek.
With those verses as our foundation, he asked us to focus on three questions:
- What does it mean to seek God’s face?
Seeking God’s face is hard work. It takes practice. Mental coasting is not an option. It means actively listening for that voice in the places we really need to hear it —in our relationships, in managing our resources, in our daily activities. It means turning away from the values of the world and turning toward Jesus’s teachings. - How do we seek God?
To seek God’s face we must create the conditions to make a conscious choice to sit in God’s presence and peace; to read, meditate upon, and converse with the word, to find God through prayer and sharing with others. This must become a habit, a daily practice. When we get distracted, which will inevitably happen, we must renew our commitment. - Is the search only one way?
This was best answered by a long quote from Henri Nouwen:
The question is not “How am I to find God?” but “How am I to let myself be found by him?” The question is not “How am I to know God?” but “How am I to let myself be known by God?” And, finally, the question is not “How am I to love God?” but “How am I to let myself be loved by God?” God is looking into the distance for me, trying to find me, and longing to bring me home.”
In the busyness of our lives, it is easy to forget that God is always right here with us, for us. Wherever we are he is. He is waiting for us to open our eyes, our ears, our hands and our hearts, see him and come home—like the prodigal son.
As John said, the journey is long and it does not end until we are face-to-face with God. Until then, we must awaken ourselves to the Holy Spirit. Feel the energy that moves through and among us. Until then, we must seek God in praise and in prayer and allow the light of His love to shine on us.
Listen to this sermon here!