A WHOLE-heart perspective -- I wrote this almost ONE YEAR ago -- thank God for the last year :)

A WHOLE-heart perspective

I just found this on my computer as I prepared to write a new post. I wrote this almost ONE YEAR ago. I don't know why I didn't post it at the time, but I've learned so much since January 2012. So here's a little insight into my refection on a weird time in my life. Thank God for the last year!

Well, prepare yourself, ANLTL readers, because here’s another big dose of Lynsey’s honesty. Right now (or really for the past several months), I find myself in the midst of a battle. I’m using the word ‘battle’ instead of ‘war’ because it seems a little more appropriate – let’s face it, I (sometimes) have the tendency to be a little dramatic J In this case, the battle isn’t all-consuming and there aren’t numerous casualties. Thus, it’s a battle, not a war.

I’m writing this particular post because I think (and I’m pretty confident in this assumption) that many people are guilty of doing the same thing I have – in my case, it’s what started my battle.

I stopped seeking with my WHOLE heart.

I hear and have heard so many people quote Jeremiah 29:11 (Jesus knows His plans for you, and He promises you hope and a future). I love this verse too, and I believe it; however, I continually found myself going to another verse, just two lines away: Jeremiah 29:13:

“You will seek me and find me when you seek with your whole heart.”

That sounds pretty basic, right? Who could possibly seek with only a partial heart? I thought this as well. So, after I discovered this verse, I fell in love with it, and it stuck with me – or at least I thought it did…

I’ve made so many important decisions in the past several years regarding college, my plan of study, my career, etc. In all those, I went back to this verse and made sure that I was seeking with my whole heart. To me, that meant seeing big-picture, asking God to reveal his will, discovering how I could honor Jesus through each circumstance, and putting myself aside to serve others.

I’ve found that at age 24, my life isn’t exactly what I thought it would be. All those important decisions I mentioned earlier brought me to even bigger and more thought-provoking crossroads. I hate to admit that I don’t even know at what point this happened, but looking back, I now realize my WHOLE-heart perspective that I once prided myself in attaining, was lost. blurred

Some people don’t believe in revelations. But I do. I believe that sometimes Jesus knows his children (especially a child like me) need a BIG reminder of our BIG God. He gave that to me through the continuing verses in Jeremiah 29, and I am so grateful.

Seeking with our whole heart means sitting face-to-face with Jesus. It means giving up yourself to Him and for Him in every way. And trust me, friends, when this happens, the result is not always what we think we want, but I’ve come to find, the will of God is ALWAYS sovereign and perfect. It’s NOT seeking to keep your life comfortable, and it’s NOT seeking to get what YOU think is best. As a matter of fact, I’ve learned that seeking to have a WHOLE-heart perspective is actually about seeking to have your whole heart filled with Jesus’s love, grace and mercy. It’s HIS spurpose and will, not mine.