Poochy, one of my best dogs when I was a child, was a Beagle
hound. I have so many fond memories of going hunting with him. Poochy’s instinct was to chase rabbits and he
had a heart prepared to do just that.
How did he prepared or set his heart (innermost nature) to seek rabbits?
I don’t know. All I know is he had an innermost desire to go hunting with me,
be with me, and chase any animal I sicked
him on.
He was prepared to go with me anywhere and in any type of
weather. Nothing would stop him from
doing what he was purposed to do. If a
rabbit ran in a hole, Poochy would dig until he was worn out trying to get him
out. Many times I would have to pick him
up and carry him to the truck because he
didn’t want to give up on getting a rabbit.
Can I learn from Poochy’s tenacity for chasing rabbits? Solomon said in Proverbs 6:6 “Go to the ant,
you sluggard! Consider her ways and be
wise, which having no captain, overseer or ruler, provides her supplies in the
summer, and gathers her food in the harvest.
(NKJV)
I cannot remember ever seeing Poochy eat a rabbit. I can remember his tail wagging when I held up the
rabbit I shot that he had chased for several minutes. Why was he so set on
chasing rabbits when he never gained anything by chasing them through brush
piles, blackberry thickets, creeks and cold weather? I can’t speculate on what this little dog had
on his mind, but I think he did it so passionately because he knew that was his
purpose. And he carried out his purpose
with all his heart.
The ants are prepared for gathering food in summer, Poochy
was prepared for chasing rabbits on a moment’s notice, no matter the weather
conditions, so what is my heart prepared to seek? Is it a career, a big house,
popularity, etc. or is it to seek the Lord?
If I prepare my heart to seek the Lord and love Him with all
my heart, soul, mind and strength, what will my life look like and what will my
family look like? What trials and storms of this world can I withstand? Will I
be diligent pursuing my God given purpose in seeking Him, loving Him, and
obeying Him?
A Pew Poll a few years ago said the population of the United
States was 78 percent Christian. It
doesn’t matter which media I receive information from, my perception is only a
small percentage of those “Christians” have prepared (set) their hearts (inner
being, will) to seek God. I cannot avoid
looking inward myself and asking the question, “Have I prepared my heart to
seek the Lord?”.
Does God’s word say anything about man preparing his heart
to seek the Lord? In 2 Chronicles 12:14 we read of King Rhehoboam. And he
did evil, because he did not prepare his heart to seek the Lord. We also read in 2 Chronicles 19:3 of Jehu the
son of Hanani the seer speaking to the King Jehoshaphat, Nevertheless good things are found in you, in that you have removed the
wooden images from the land, and have prepared your heart to seek God. (NKJV)
We all prepare or set in our heart to seek something. We
unlike animals that have been given instinct, have a will. God created man in His image and let him have
dominion over everything on this earth.
In Deuteronomy 4:27-29, read what God tells His people who have fallen
away serving gods made with men’s hands. He tells them in verse 29, But from there you will seek the Lord your
God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all
your soul. (NKJV)
Have we in this country served other gods made with men’s
hands? What is made with men’s hands
that we choose over preparing our hearts to seek God? Sports, recreation,
social media, money, careers, education, political correctness, alternate
lifestyles, to name a few, have distracted mankind from preparing his heart to
seek God. The above activities are then
made evil because they are in place of preparing the heart to seek God. Also, some are evil because God has said not
to do them. Some are ok if they do not
come before God in our lives. Good examples
are sports and some recreation. God
knows we have need of some things. Please read Matthew 6:25-34. Christ tells us
not to worry, but to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and
all these things will be added to you.
What motivates us to prepare our hearts to seek God? How do
we do it? Why do we have to do it? What are the obstacles standing in our way?
What happens to us and our families if we do or do not do it?
Look for upcoming post that will give us some ideas and
examples of how to prepare our hearts and also, the way some great men of God prepared their
hearts to seek God.
You may not need this, but I do. I hope in the next posts you can read how I
have struggled in preparing my heart to seek God. Many forces and trials have tried to obstruct
my path in seeking God. Poochy didn’t
give up on seeking rabbits and I am not going to give up on seeking God. I hope I can write something and use God’s
word for you to come to the same conclusion.
Thanks for reading. Please share on Facebook or email to
your friends and family. We have a God
who loves us and an enemy, Satan, who hates us. We will serve one or the
other. We can’t serve both. It is and
always has been our choice.
