BBD 04.02.14 Looking for Yourself (New)

#1 · April 2, 2014, 1:56 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on April 2, 2014, 1:56 pm
Posted by: theburningbushdevotional <theburningbushdevotional@...>

If for some reason you do not
receive your email version of the devotional please check the Burning Bush
website at www.theburningbushnet for the “Devotional of the Day” and read the
devotional there.

The Burning Bush Devotional

14,000 Subscribers
to the Email Devotional

04.02.14

Looking
for Yourself

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after
Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever
desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake
will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the
whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for
his soul? – Matthew 16:24-26 NKJV.

Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the
desires of your heart. – Psalm 37:4 NKJV.

A
tourist group on a tour bus in Iceland was on their way to Eldgia Canyon when
they made a rest stop near the Canyon. One of the women on the tour took the
opportunity to change clothes and freshen up a little. When the group had
reassembled to resume their trip to the Canyon for some unknown reason the
group did not recognize the woman who had changed clothes and instead thought
that she was missing. A search party was then made up of 50 people from the
group (This included the missing woman who didn’t know they were searching for
her.) and others which began searching the area. The Icelandic Coast Guard
began to mobilize to help in the effort. Finally, many hours later someone in
the group realized that the one they were looking for was actually helping them
look for herself. The missing woman had finally found herself! (Orange News
03.11.14)

For
most of my life, I have heard about people who leave home traveling about
trying to find themselves. It is said to be an adventure in self-discovery.
What is it that they find when they finally find themselves? What is it that
they are really searching for? When you join a search party looking for
yourself what are you trying to find?

From my own observations, it would appear that we would
all like to have a meaningful life. We would like our lives to count, to make a
difference in someway. We have a built in desire for something. Our hearts
desire what? This is what we are really searching for when we begin to try to
find ourselves, the desires of our hearts.

Blaise Pascal may be the first who wrote about the God shaped hole in
our hearts when he said, “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every
person, and it can never be filled by any created thing. It can only be filled
by God, made known through Jesus Christ.”
Although I believe King Solomon was speaking of this same thing when he said, “I have seen the God-given task with which
the sons of men are to be occupied. He has made
everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts,
except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.
I know that nothing is better
for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives (Ecclesiastes
3:10-12 NKJV).” The Amplified Bible translates a
portion of verse 11 as: “He
also has planted eternity in men’s hearts and minds [a divinely implanted sense of a purpose working
through the ages which nothing under the sun but God alone can satisfy]….”
As we are told in the Acts 17 the apostle Paul
noticed that the people of Athens were worshiping an “unknown
god.” The people of Athens also had a God shaped vacuum within their
hearts.

How do we “find
ourselves?” What we are really saying and wanting when we begin to look for
ourselves is that we want to find the desires of our hearts (Psalm 37:4). How do we find the desires of our hearts?
Jesus tells us in John 7:37, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to
Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has
said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” Jesus, is how we find ourselves. He will fulfill
our heart’s desire. He will fill up the vacuum, the God shaped hole in our
hearts. As Jesus says, “If anyone desires to come after
Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever
desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake
will FIND IT.”

If you have been looking for yourself you don’t need to
take a walkabout, you don’t need to take off on a survival trip into the
wilderness, you don’t need to wander the world in search of your life; you don’t
have to do any of those things. Because, you see, you just need Jesus!

Copyright © 2014. Ed Wrather. The
Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998
the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed Wrather
began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of these first
devotionals was primarily through the Burning Bush Newsletter sent to prison
facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

Visit the
Burning Bush websites:

www.theburningbush.net

www.theburningbush.org

The .org
Burning Bush website

is being updated.

The Burning Bush websites have
received visits from more than 170 countries. Celebrating 15 years online since
January 31, 1998. Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush Devotional has been
spreading the truth of God's Word to more than 14,000 subscribers across the
world.

You can leave comments/feedback
about the devotionals at www.theburningbush.net.

There is a translation tool on
theburningbush.net website in the top left hand corner of all of the pages.

Prayer Warriors Wanted! Please join the
Burning Bush Prayer Group. The group began in 1998. Send prayer requests and
receive prayer requests. To join send an
email to: bbpg-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Ed Wrather has retired from
pastoring full-time and has more time to pursue other ministry opportunities.
You can make contact at edwrather@yahoo.com or theburningbushdevotional@gmail.com View LinkedIn profile with
endorsements at http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=92988105

Prayer Requests: Please pray for
the people of Ukraine and Venezuela. Please pray for our friend, Ora Lee
Roberts, as she recovers from surgery. Many prayer needs are posted at the
Burning Bush website on the Prayer Request page. You can also post your prayer
requests there (Of course, I am always in need of prayer - please pray for
me.).

If you enjoy the devotional
please recommend it to your friends. They may subscribe by sending a blank
email to burningbushdevo-join@welovegod.org

There is a complete devotional
archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/DevotionalArchive.html.

You can unsubscribe to the burningbushdevo
devotional group by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org and then respond to the confirmation email.

You may
subscribe to the html text group (Because of time constraints the devotional is
only being sent now in html format) by sending a blank email to
burningbushhtml-join@welovegod.org and you may unsubscribe by sending a blank
email to burningbushhtml-leave@welovegod.org and then respond to the
confirmation email. If the link does not work, copy and paste the link.

--

To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org

Posted by: theburningbushdevotional <theburningbushdevotional@...>

If for some reason you do not
receive your email version of the devotional please check the Burning Bush
website at http://www.theburningbushnet for the “Devotional of the Day” and read the
devotional there.

The Burning Bush Devotional

14,000 Subscribers
to the Email Devotional

04.02.14

Looking
for Yourself

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after
Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever
desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake
will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the
whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for
his soul? – Matthew 16:24-26 NKJV.

Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the
desires of your heart. – Psalm 37:4 NKJV.

A
tourist group on a tour bus in Iceland was on their way to Eldgia Canyon when
they made a rest stop near the Canyon. One of the women on the tour took the
opportunity to change clothes and freshen up a little. When the group had
reassembled to resume their trip to the Canyon for some unknown reason the
group did not recognize the woman who had changed clothes and instead thought
that she was missing. A search party was then made up of 50 people from the
group (This included the missing woman who didn’t know they were searching for
her.) and others which began searching the area. The Icelandic Coast Guard
began to mobilize to help in the effort. Finally, many hours later someone in
the group realized that the one they were looking for was actually helping them
look for herself. The missing woman had finally found herself! (Orange News
03.11.14)

For
most of my life, I have heard about people who leave home traveling about
trying to find themselves. It is said to be an adventure in self-discovery.
What is it that they find when they finally find themselves? What is it that
they are really searching for? When you join a search party looking for
yourself what are you trying to find?

From my own observations, it would appear that we would
all like to have a meaningful life. We would like our lives to count, to make a
difference in someway. We have a built in desire for something. Our hearts
desire what? This is what we are really searching for when we begin to try to
find ourselves, the desires of our hearts.

Blaise Pascal may be the first who wrote about the God shaped hole in
our hearts when he said, “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every
person, and it can never be filled by any created thing. It can only be filled
by God, made known through Jesus Christ.”
Although I believe King Solomon was speaking of this same thing when he said, “I have seen the God-given task with which
the sons of men are to be occupied. He has made
everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts,
except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.
I know that nothing is better
for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives (Ecclesiastes
3:10-12 NKJV).” The Amplified Bible translates a
portion of verse 11 as: “He
also has planted eternity in men’s hearts and minds [a divinely implanted sense of a purpose working
through the ages which nothing under the sun but God alone can satisfy]….”
As we are told in the Acts 17 the apostle Paul
noticed that the people of Athens were worshiping an “unknown
god.” The people of Athens also had a God shaped vacuum within their
hearts.

How do we “find
ourselves?” What we are really saying and wanting when we begin to look for
ourselves is that we want to find the desires of our hearts (Psalm 37:4). How do we find the desires of our hearts?
Jesus tells us in John 7:37, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to
Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has
said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” Jesus, is how we find ourselves. He will fulfill
our heart’s desire. He will fill up the vacuum, the God shaped hole in our
hearts. As Jesus says, “If anyone desires to come after
Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever
desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake
will FIND IT.”

If you have been looking for yourself you don’t need to
take a walkabout, you don’t need to take off on a survival trip into the
wilderness, you don’t need to wander the world in search of your life; you don’t
have to do any of those things. Because, you see, you just need Jesus!

Copyright © 2014. Ed Wrather. The
Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998
the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed Wrather
began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of these first
devotionals was primarily through the Burning Bush Newsletter sent to prison
facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

Visit the
Burning Bush websites:

http://www.theburningbush.net

http://www.theburningbush.org

The .org
Burning Bush website

is being updated.

The Burning Bush websites have
received visits from more than 170 countries. Celebrating 15 years online since
January 31, 1998. Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush Devotional has been
spreading the truth of God's Word to more than 14,000 subscribers across the
world.

You can leave comments/feedback
about the devotionals at http://www.theburningbush.net.

There is a translation tool on
theburningbush.net website in the top left hand corner of all of the pages.

Prayer Warriors Wanted! Please join the
Burning Bush Prayer Group. The group began in 1998. Send prayer requests and
receive prayer requests. To join send an
email to: bbpg-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Ed Wrather has retired from
pastoring full-time and has more time to pursue other ministry opportunities.
You can make contact at edwrather@yahoo.com or theburningbushdevotional@gmail.com View LinkedIn profile with
endorsements at http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=92988105

Prayer Requests: Please pray for
the people of Ukraine and Venezuela. Please pray for our friend, Ora Lee
Roberts, as she recovers from surgery. Many prayer needs are posted at the
Burning Bush website on the Prayer Request page. You can also post your prayer
requests there (Of course, I am always in need of prayer - please pray for
me.).

If you enjoy the devotional
please recommend it to your friends. They may subscribe by sending a blank
email to burningbushdevo-join@welovegod.org

There is a complete devotional
archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/DevotionalArchive.html.

You can unsubscribe to the burningbushdevo
devotional group by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org and then respond to the confirmation email.

You may
subscribe to the html text group (Because of time constraints the devotional is
only being sent now in html format) by sending a blank email to
burningbushhtml-join@welovegod.org and you may unsubscribe by sending a blank
email to burningbushhtml-leave@welovegod.org and then respond to the
confirmation email. If the link does not work, copy and paste the link.

To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org