I Seek Thee Earnestly

I’d like to share the story  behind my song, I Seek Thee Earnestly, from the worship recording Let It Rain. This song came to me on June 6, 1991.

In those days of my life, I was brand new to the world of sharing my testimony publicly. At times I fought great fear and anxiety because of my fear of rejection, but quickly came to realize that the more I shared the truth, the more free from fear and anxiety I became! As a means of renewing my mind and deepening my relationship with the Lord, I would sing my prayers to Him and we would carry on a conversation in song. I would sing to Him. He would sing to me. From this period of my life, I learned that fear and anxiety could be dealt with by believing and receiving God’s love for me.

I longed to know God and to be known by HIm. I feel this is the greatest need of my human heart. My love for His presence was sent into the stratosphere when I came to the realization that He never, ever left MY presence! Tis song is simply my heart’s cry – our heart’s cry as believers. Worshipping with reckless abandon doesn’t happen just in times of celebration. For me, this song came in a time of deep adoration and longing for His presence. If I can’t know Him intimately, why know Him at all?

When I sense His presence – after a time of forgetting He’s always with me – He takes my breath away. Knowing His voice is like streams in the desert – like taking in a breath of fresh air after being in a cold stale place – like being sung to sleep in my Father’s arms and then waking up to find He’s still holding you.

I remember as a child pretending to be asleep in the car after a long trip and waiting for my dad to carry me into the house and tuck me into bed. I never got tired of those times and I still remember them very vividly. That’s the way I want to be with Jesus. By faith, let’s nestle up close to our Father like little children and simply rest in His massive, loving embrace.

God, You are my God;

I shall be watching for You;

My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You,

In a dry and exhausted land where there is no water.

So have I seen You in the sanctuary,

To see Your power and glory.

Because Your favor is better than life, My lips will praise You.

So I will bless You as long as I live;

I will lift up my hands in Your name.

My soul is satisfied as with fat and fatness,

And my mouth offers praises with joyful lips.

When I remember You on my bed,

I meditate on You in the night watches,

For You have been my help,

And in the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy.

My soul clings to You;

Your right hand takes hold of me.

Psalm 63:1-8 NASB

Like David, we go through times of wilderness in our lives. Times of emotional wilderness, mental wilderness, physical wilderness, social wilderness, relational wilderness. Realizing one is alone in the wilderness of any kind can lead to fear and anxiety and panic. That is why we must remember we are never alone and that we have access to God’s presence in the midst of and all the way through and out of any wilderness we find ourselves lost in.

Let’s be like David and call upon the Lord - seek Him and His presence - through the wilderness times of life…and let’s allow God’s perfect love to put an end to fear and anxious thinking and moments of panic. Let’s put on the hearts of loving children being held closely and safely in the all-encompassing and protective arms of our loving Father God. He can take the wild chaotic times of wilderness and turn them into the peace and healing that go beyond our wildest dreams of just how good and how redemptive our God is. Let’s become as trusting children and surrender our fearful wilderness moments to His loving care.

Dennis Jernigan

To hear the Dennis Jernigan Podcast version of this teaching, go to http://podcast.dennisjernigan.com/e/i-seek-thee-earnestly/

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