Seeing Jesus

Speaking of Zacchaeus God's Word says, "He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see Him, since Jesus was coming that way." Luke 19:3-4

Zacchaeus was vertically challenged and knew it would hinder his ability to see Jesus, so he ran ahead of the crowd and climbed a tree to get a good look at Him. He put forth great effort and was intentional about seeing the Lord. In doing so, Jesus saw him, spoke to him and went to his home to stay that day.

What hinders my ability to see Jesus in the day to day busyness of life? What hinders yours? Some thoughts that come to my mind include:

• Not making God my priority for the day.
• Lack of time in prayer and His Word - or being too rushed and not waiting to hear from Him.
• Being distracted by my "to do" list or other busyness.
• Choosing sleep or other things over time with God.
• Unconfessed sin in my life.
• Hearing God's Word and not doing what it says.
• Refusing to give God control.
• Harboring bitterness toward God over unaswered prayer, an answer I didn't like, or difficult life circumstances.
• Forgetting to praise God in the little things, therefore overlooking His hand at work in my life.
• A complaining attitude vs. an attitude of gratitude.

In response, what could I do differently in order to be intentional about seeing Jesus?

• Give God first place on my agenda each day.
• Carve out time in my day/week to spend extended, uninterrupted time at His feet.
• Say "no" to keep busyness to a minimum.
• Choose to put God first above all the things that try to lure me away.
• Repent of sin immediately - as soon as the Holy Spirit convicts me of it.
• Walk in obedience to the things God asks of me.
• Put God in the driver's seat of my life and live surrendered to Him.
• Renounce all bitterness towards the Lord, believing that He is Sovereign, He knows what's best for me, and He is in control.
• Be intentional about looking for God in the small stuff - in the mundane - and praise him!
• Cultivate an attitude of gratitude toward the Lord and others.

God, I praise You. You are the Lover of my Soul. You are working out a good plan, writing a beautiful story with my life, and I thank You. I ask today that You would reveal to me, or convict me of, anything hindering my view of You.  Show me Lord how I can make greater effort and be more intentional about seeing You. I ask for eyes to see Your hand at work in my life and ears to hear Your still, small voice. Lord, I don't want to miss a thing! In Jesus' name, amen.