Your search is over...

Recently, I have seen a lot of people searching for things in the wrong places. Men searching for affirmation from women other than their wives. Women searching for love from men that aren’t worthy of it. Mothers searching for their worth in their children and losing themselves in the process. Teenagers searching for approval from their friends with sometimes deadly consequences. Church folks are even guilty of searching for satisfaction in their leader and ending up disappointed. In every case, the search is unfulfilling and never-ending. Why? Because you are looking for things in people and places that can only be found in God.  Today, God told me to tell you that your search is over. Hallelujah! I don’t know about you but that’s good news! Imagine not having to look for the answer to your problem anymore. Imagine not needing to search for calm in your storm anymore. Imagine not waking up every day wondering how you will make it. Your search is over!

When God said this to me, my initial thought was that this only applies to a certain type of person. You know…needy people! And certainly not me! But the more I listened, the more I realized that everyone is searching for something or has been at some point. We have all been guilty of looking for answers for an issue in a million places before getting to God. The key, folks, is in knowing where to look! Some of you have been looking so hard for man to give you what you need that you’ve missed God reminding you that He has already given you everything. He wants you to know today that everything that you need can be found in Him. God highlighted 2 Peter 1:3 – 9 in The Voice translation for me this morning and it put a whole new spin on the peace of God for me.

His divine power has given us everything we need to experience life and to reflect God’s true nature through the knowledge of the One who called us by His glory and virtue. Through these things, we have received God’s great and valuable promises, so we might escape the corruption of worldly desires and share in the divine nature. God took the first step to rescue us from this corrupt world. He has granted us His power, revealed to us true knowledge, and spoken to us great promises. He has done all this for a reason: that we might participate in His own nature and reflect His own life. But we are not passive observers of God’s saving actions. We must receive His grace, grow in knowledge, and join Him in this work of redemption. To achieve this, you will need to add virtue to your faith, and then knowledge to your virtue; to knowledge, add discipline; to discipline, add endurance; to endurance, add godliness; to godliness, add affection for others as sisters and brothers; and to affection, at last, add love. For if you possess these traits and multiply them, then you will never be ineffective or unproductive in your relationship with our Lord Jesus the Anointed; but if you don’t have these qualities, then you will be nearsighted and blind, forgetting that your past sins have been washed away. (2 Pet. 1:3-9, VOICE)

Instead of searching, start receiving and adding. You see, God is not missing and He wants you stop acting like He is! When you feel your heart breaking, look for Him, His love is everlasting. When your strength is failing, look to Him, His strength is made perfect in your weakness. When the grief is overwhelming, reach for Him, He is the rock that is higher than you. When you feel like you are losing at life, seek Him for He is your defense and strong tower. When the holidays are your worst enemy because depression and loneliness overtake you; turn to Him for He is your constant help and your peace. It’s over! Stop searching! All that you need is in God and He wants you to remember it!

 May God’s abiding presence surround you and remind you of the indescribable gift of love that He has given you through Jesus Christ. Your search is over…

Amen…