How to Seek God’s Face The Bible encourages us many times to seek the face of God in our daily lives.
Deuteronomy 4:29 tells us to ‘seek the Lord and we will find Him if we seek Him with all our heart and soul’.
To seek someone or something connotes that the object of our search is lost or hidden.
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However, this is not the case with God, because He is not lost. So what then does it mean to seek the face of God?
The Hebrew word for “face” in the Old Testament is often translated as “presence.”
When we seek God’s face, we seek His presence; a personal encounter with Him, and a deeper understanding of who He is.
In this article, we highlight thirteen proven ways to seek the face of God that will yield life-transforming results.
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Prayer
Prayer is a powerful way to seek the face of God. It is the vehicle through which we earnestly and purposefully pursue the Lord. Anyone can engage in meaningful prayer anywhere, anytime, and for any length of time.
Its only criteria are a humble and pliable spirit as stated by the Psalmist in Psalm 51:17. The Bible assures us that God will not despise a broken and a contrite heart.
Herbert Lockyer in his book ‘How to Make Prayer More Effective’ emphasizes the potency and power of fervent prayer. Through prayer believers not only come into a greater revelation of God, but we also unpack supernatural power for Godly living.
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Fasting
Fasting is another powerful way by which believers seek the face of God.
When combined with prayer, fasting is a potent weapon to demonstrate our ability to conquer the flesh and seek God in an intentional way. Fasting is not readily accepted by everyone, but to those who utilize it consistently, it yields exponential benefits.
Fasting strengthens our faith in the Almighty God and opens up a greater revelation of who He is. It exposes our weaknesses and frailties and reveals our tremendous need for Him.
Also Related: Top 15 Ways God Heal Your Broken Heart.
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Live A Victorious Christian Life
Studying God’s word
Matthew 4:4 declares that “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” The word of God is the irreplaceable and irrefutable sustenance in every believer’s life.
The word of God reveals the mind, nature, and character of God to those who study it. What better way to know more about God, than by studying and searching the Scriptures.
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Meditation
Spending time in silence and solitude thinking about God’s goodness, and pondering His word leads to divine revelation and insights. This sacred opportunity is missed when we have to contend daily with our busy schedules and calendars.
Taking the time to meditate upon God requires discipline and dedication in our pursuit for His presence – His Face. Through meditation, we experience more of His abundant love, as we come to know Him on a more intimate level.
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Kingdom Service
In 2 Corinthians 5:14, Paul states that it is God’s love that constrains us, and compels us to serve. It is through this compulsion that we have a desire to give of ourselves, time, and resources to help others.
In our desire to seek God, it is a natural progression for believers to spread His love through service. When we serve we become even closer drawn to God, as we become His arms extended to those in need.
In Billy Graham’s Christian Workers Handbook (1982), he supports the tremendous impact that Christian service has on a believer’s life.
He indicates that when we serve others we walk out the Gospel, and through this spiritual demonstration we please God. As a result, God blesses us and reveals Himself to us in a greater dimension.
When we serve, we develop a greater sense of purpose and meaning in our lives. In Matthew 20:28 Jesus epitomizes servitude when it states that ‘He came not to be served but to serve others’. If Jesus Christ desired to serve then we are likewise called to be of the same mind.
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Corporate Fellowship
We are admonished in Hebrews 10:25 ‘not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together.’ Corporate fellowship invites the presence of God and awakens and ignites the spiritual fire in every believer.
As we engage in corporate fellowship we progress in spiritual growth and understanding of God’s word and who He is. Through corporate fellowship, we are also taught the word of God which helps us in our journey to spiritual maturity.
We become firmly rooted in God’s word which strengthens our faith in Him.
Photo by Elisabeth Wales on Unsplash
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Obedience to God’s Word
If we desire to know more about God and to know Him intimately, we must obey Him.
It is impossible to be in a close relationship with God, and fully experience Him without obeying His word. We recall biblical Patriarchs such as Enoch and Noah who walked closely with God because they were obedient to Him.
God calls us to obey Him and this is vital as we diligently seek His face. In Jesus Christ, we have the perfect example of obedience. As His disciples, we endeavor to follow His example by obeying God’s word.
Jesus commands us in St John 14:15 “If you love me, keep my commandments”. True obedience flows from a heart of love and thanksgiving for the grace we have received from God.
God rewards our obedience by opening the eyes of our understanding in greater measure. There is always a blessing that awaits us when we seek to obey God.
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Sharing the Gospel
The bible teaches us many times how important it is to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with others. Sharing the Gospel with others is a sure way to seek the face of God.
In the book ‘You His Witness’ by Billy Graham and Rebecca Pippert, they admonish believers to spread the Gospel with others. Believers are encouraged to lead others to a greater knowledge of Jesus Christ and into a personal relationship with Him.
In doing this, we fulfill the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20, which commands us to make disciples wherever we go. Making disciples means to reproduce after our kind, and as we share Jesus Christ with others they surrender to Him.
We in turn will be drawn even closer to God as our passion to share the Gospel increases. In sharing the Gospel we inspire others to love God and to desire to want to know Him more.
A believer’s duty is to point others to Jesus Christ and to represent Him through our words and deeds.
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Imitating God’s Ways
Paul encourages us in Ephesians 5:1 to ‘be imitators of God, as dearly loved children’. In our pursuit of God, we seek to be transformed in His image and in His likeness.
What does it mean to imitate God’s ways? It means to do what He does, love what He loves, and hate what He hates.
As we seek His face we desire to operate in the Fruit of the Spirit as listed in Galatians 5:22-23. The Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance.
The fruit of God’s Spirit in us means that God’s own character and heart are at work within us. Because of this, we will grow to become more and more like Him with each passing day.
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Sharing our personal testimony
Sharing our testimonies is tied in with sharing the Gospel, but done on an even more personal level. We not only share the word of God, but we share with others our personal journeys and experiences.
Share our beliefs but we share our experiences, which include our struggles, times of sadness, and mistakes. We share everything that has brought us to this point and how we overcame and are still overcoming those obstacles.
It is through our personal testimonies that others are encouraged and drawn closer to God. They will see that if we went through it and came out victorious then they can be victorious as well.
We are all imperfect beings, but as broken as we are, we change lives when we share our personal testimonies. In sharing our own stories we demonstrate the love of God and this pulls us deeper into His presence.
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Declaring and professing God’s word
Declaring God’s word is a critical part of our spiritual growth and development as believers. Jesus Christ, Himself saw the importance of declaring the word of God.
In John 8:28 Jesus said ‘…I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things. If Jesus saw it as vital to speak His Father’s words, then we are to do the same.
The Bible assures us that there is a tremendous benefit for us when we declare the Word of God. As we seek to be like Jesus, we also seek to say what He says.
When we declare the word of God, it shifts atmospheres and unleashes His supernatural presence in our lives. The bible declares that life and death are in the power of the tongue.
Declaring God’s word brings divine alignment and the manifestation of His glory in our lives.
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Sanctification and Consecration
The bible tells us in Leviticus 20:7 to consecrate ourselves unto the Lord. Consecration means to set ourselves apart from unrighteous ways and turn to the Lord so that He can use us.
It also means that as we seek the Lord, we should not engage in any behavior that displeases Him. Ungodly or unrighteous living hinders the flow of God’s presence and power in our lives.
God desires to have unhindered intimacy with us, and for us to please Him in how we live our lives. Living a life that is consecrated and sanctified unto God helps us to “be holy, as He is Holy”.
The process of sanctification and consecration also leads to spiritual growth and maturity. The more we seek Him and allow the Holy Spirit to transform us, is the more we become like Him.
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Praise and Worship
The true nature of praise and worship is to seek God’s face as we are ushered into His presence. The Lord wants us to humbly and trustingly seek Him, and worship is another powerful way to do that.
The Bible tells us in Psalm 22:3 that God inhabits our praises. When we Praise and Worship Him, we invite His presence to come and reside in us His dwelling place.
When we genuinely praise and worship God we are surrendering ourselves to His Lordship and Sovereignty. In worship, our focus shifts from ourselves to an amazing God, and He is attracted to us and draws near.
Like other spiritual disciplines, genuine worship strengthens our relationship with God and opens up a greater revelation of His divine nature.
Conclusion
The Christian walk is a life devoted to seeking God’s presence, seeking His favor, and seeking His face. Seeking God’s face requires deep intimacy that comes through vulnerability and humility.
The Psalmist declares in Psalm 63:1 that he will earnestly seek God because He is thirsty for Him. It is with this same determination and dedication that we set ourselves to seek His face.
By seeking God’s face we know His identity, we know how to distinguish Him from other so-called gods.
In seeking the Lord we come to know His character and personality, what makes Him sad, angry, and joyful. When we know Him we are able to recognize Him anywhere and in any situation.
Stephen Taylor’s book “Seeking God” illustrates that the more we seek God, the more we desire to seek God. God is the inexhaustible supply of perfect love, joy, peace, and all that is Holy and beautiful.
Seeking the face of God is a consistent and deliberate act that manifests through a transformed heart and life. A heart transformed by God’s presence emanates from the inside out.
As we seek and get closer to God, we are moved to demonstrate this transformation outwardly. We practicalize our spiritual transformation and continuous pursuit of God in ways that bring glory to Him and bless others.
