Seeking, Thirsting, Longing

The other day I drove down the road to the grocery store and parked my car in the back of the parking lot, seeking solitude and solace with God. I needed to be alone. I needed to repent. I needed to confess my recent sins and all the years that I had strayed away from Him. I read my Bible, prayed, cried, and poured out my heart. I left greatly comforted with the truths God revealed to me, but I was still not fully satisfied. What had gone wrong? As Proverbs 28:13 says, "He who conceals his sins will not succeed; he who confesses and abandons them will gain mercy." Had I not confessed to the Lord's satisfaction? Had God turned away from me? Was I lost forever? Thankfully, God does not turn a deaf ear toward us. He does indeed listen, and He puts people in our lives to correct "those He loves". (Hebrews 12:6) " 7 Keep asking, and it will be given to you; keep seeking, and you will find; keep knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone

The narrow road. The hard path. I think I understand it now. We climb higher, pursuing a goal that is beyond sight but still there. Waiting. The path is rough. Stones jut out every step of the way, teasing and tripping. We stumble but we don't fall. We can't fall. It's still there. He's still there. Waiting. Calling. Beckoning us to follow Him. And so we climb higher...up the narrow road. " 13 Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." (Matthew 7:13-14) The Christian walk has never been and will never be easy. (See John 16:33) If it were easy, we would have no need for God. As believers in Jesus Christ (Yeshua), we are called to walk the narrow road, yet so many of us try to avoid the pain, the humiliation, and the struggle that, in reality, defines our faith. Sometimes we act