What am I seeking?

What am I seeking? The gift? Or the giver? The promise? Or the promiser? The resource? Or the provider?

Am I seeking God's hand? Or am I seeking his face?

This morning in church we were praying for the Lord to do a work in our lives, in our community, in our nation. As I was praying, I was impressed that we need to give glory and thanks to the Lord, and we need to honor him in our prayers, not just ask for blessings or miracles. We need to seek to know him, not just to get what he can give. Yes, he gives good gifts, yes, we need to ask when we have a need (Luke 11:10, Matt 7:8)....but we need to seek his presence and a relationship with him first.

That's hard. It's so easy to get into a "wish list prayer" mentality. I may be praying for others, I may be praying for myself....but ultimately I feel like I'm constantly asking for things. It's so much better to praise the Lord...and I think that we should have prayer time specifically devoted to that. I don't just want to say...please help me with abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvxy.......I want to praise him, thank him and worship him in the way I talk to him.

"More then the water, I love the fountain. More then the warmth, I love the flame. More then green pastures, I love the Shepherd. More then my life, I love your name."
-Unknown