die Schönheit des Simplexen

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will ?nd; knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks ? nds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. (Matthew 7:7-8)

It used to be fairly normal that you should “search for God”. Then there was a new theological wave and the common opinion was that we have already found God and that the only thing you needed to understand was that you already had everything in Christ. Prayer in that respect was then reduced to proclamation and people claimed that they were healed or that they would become rich or whatever. In some Christian groups, people would talk about those who were still searching for God in an ironic or even sarcastic way: “Did you lose God? He must have been a small God. Well, where is he then?”
Of course it is de?nitely not right to talk in that way about other Christians and how they live their faith.
However, the realisation that you have everything in Christ and that you are blessed is for some brothers and sisters so strong that it prevents them from searching for anything – even if that means that they will sometimes miss out on something. They just proclaim and do not search at all.
I claim to be both: I proclaim to have everything in Christ and I also search for God and his gifts knowing that I have everything already. To search for God does not mean that you have lost him in the ?rst place. It means that you can experience more with him than you currently do. Whoever is searching for God does move towards him. We know where God is. We know what he likes and what he will bless. We also know that we can meet him. We search for God by heading towards something that we know. We know what he wants from us.
You can search for God in many different ways: by reading the bible, by praying, fasting, meditating, trying new things, etc. There are many possibilities.
There were always things in my life that were not quite in line with what God wants and this is exactly the reason why I am searching for God. I want to know how I can change so that heaven is visible in every aspect of my life.

You will seek me and ?nd me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you, declares the Lord, and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile. (Jeremiah 29:13-14)

It is exactly these verses that help a lot here: God will let us ?nd Him when we go searching for Him and he will change everything. I spend time with God every day to be in his presence but also so I can ?nd answers to how I should lead my life. The amazing thing is that my longing for Jesus does not lessen; it has actually been increasing over the years. The more we have of Jesus the more we long for more of Him. I can’t imagine a day where I don’t look for Him or long to meet Him. If you love somebody you can’t help wanting to be in their company.
There are of course things in my life that I proclaim, for proclaiming means nothing more than agreeing with what God’s word says about us. If I know that
God loves me but cannot feel, it I will proclaim it. If I know that God will bless me but do not feel it, I will proclaim that too. But if this relationship was only based upon what we have in Jesus and what we are in Him, then it would be really poor. I do not want to live with God on grounds of spiritual principles but in order to have an intensive relationship with Him in His presence. Neither is it enough to receive of Him and to be happy and glad about the promises he gives to us.
I want to love him for what He is. In order to do that, you have to spend time in His presence and search for His plan.

translated by the sick messenger