We frequently hear expressions like “seek God’s face,” but what does it actually mean to us as Christians? Do believers have a duty to seek God’s face, or is it a choice to develop spiritually? We’ll discuss what it means to seek God in this post, why it is crucial to your faith, and strategies for getting closer to Him every day.
Scripture frequently uses the phrase “seek God’s face” to convey a desire for a closer, more intimate relationship with God. Instead of focusing only on His gifts or blessings, it’s about seeking His presence. Like wanting to be close to someone you love, seeking His face is about intimacy.
1 Chronicles.16:11; Ps 105:4
How do Challenges bring us Closer to God?
There are many circumstances in life that can make us feel compelled and desperate to seek God. Deep emotional, physical, or spiritual difficulties are frequently the cause of these moments. Here are a few instances:
- Times of Loss and Grief from disease, financial struggles etc.
- Dealing with major Decisions or Uncertainties
- Dealing with persecution and adversity
- Moments of Extreme sin or Guilt
- Broken Relationships
- Spiritual dryness
In addition, people may look to God for direction and meaning when they feel lost or purposeless in life, enabling them to seek God’s intervention.
How do we seek God’s face?
It’s about wanting to know God deeply, not just about what He can do, but about who He is. Seeking God’s face means focusing on His character, His presence, and living in accordance with His will. Knowing God’s heart, His desires, and His plans for your life is a relational endeavor. For example, meditating on God’s Word, praying, and worshiping Him without making any requests in order to get closer to Him.
How do we seek God’s hand?
Conversely, seeking God’s hand entails pleading with Him for assistance, protection, direction, or intervention in your life. It symbolizes approaching God with wants or needs and seeking His intervention or assistance in particular circumstances. It emphasizes what God can do for us, even though this is normal and biblical—God exhorts us to put our needs before Him. Psalm 145:16 (NIV) – “You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.”
- How do Challenges bring us Closer to God?
- How do we seek God’s face?
- How do we seek God’s hand?
- What causes people to seek God?
- Seeking God’s Guidance through Prayer and Fasting
- Four (4) Accounts about asking God for Direction
- Examples of Fasting and Prayer from the Bible
- Why doesn’t God answer prayer immediately?
- Benefits of fasting and Prayer
What causes people to seek God?
In seeking God’s face, some key points to note are:
- Building a Close Relationship with God;
- Reviving Our Spirits and Minds;
- Receiving His Guidance.
The psalmist says in Psalm 27:8 (NIV) – “My heart says of you, ‘Seek his face!’ Your face, Lord, I will seek.” I think it is both seeking him for what he can do for you and also yearning to know more about him. Truly he reveals himself in different ways and people have come to a saving knowledge of him due to helps they have received not necessarily to know him deeper. Our faith and spiritual lives are strengthened by this deliberate act rather than a passive one.
Seeking God’s Guidance through Prayer and Fasting
We will examine how to seek God’s guidance through prayer and fasting, though there are other ways as well. Fasting is the practice of avoiding food and other distractions in order to concentrate on communicating with God. Additional things to avoid are
- watching TV and being on social media
- talking or silence fasting – to promote inner reflection and clarity of mind
- negative thought fasting – helps in developing positive thinking patterns
- relationship or communication fasting – improves boundaries
- sleep fasting or restriction -to improve sleep efficiency
When using prayer and fasting to seek God’s face, there are a few things to consider. Specifically
- When should I pray?
- How often you pray
- Place of prayer, and
- Outside or indoors
Four (4) Accounts about asking God for Direction
In the table below are four accounts of seeking God’s guidance and the length of time it took to get results:
| 21 days fast every month. Takes a break for the remaining 9 days of the month and resumes again the following month | God came through on the 5th month |
| Praying on a hill away from home every night from 10p.m to 3.a.m | God came through after 10 months |
| Fasting and prayer from 2am with going round a round-about | Results obtained in 7 days |
| Sitting indoors praying from 12midnight till 2am daily | Varied results from health restoration to gaining employment within 1 year |
Examples of Fasting and Prayer from the Bible
Fasting has existed for a very long time. It was also used as an act of worship and showing reverence to God. Let’s look at some biblical examples
Esther 4: 15-16.
Esther called for a three-day fast for all Jews in the country after being faced with the difficult choice of approaching the king without an invitation to plead for their lives.
Acts 16:16-40.
After delivering a girl off an evil spirit who exploited her to generate revenue for her captors, Paul and Silas were apprehended and imprisoned. The impact of prayer at midnight.
v.25 The other inmates were listening to Paul and Silas as they prayed and sang hymns to God at around midnight. v. 26 The prison’s foundations were rocked by a sudden, extremely strong earthquake. All of the prison’s doors suddenly flew open, releasing the chains of all inmates.
The aforementioned examples demonstrate the importance of consistency and diligence. But…
Why doesn’t God answer prayer immediately?
The time it took God to respond to each person’s prayer varied, as the above illustrates. Does this constitute a delay? While awaiting the final answer to prayer, some Christian virtues can be cultivated, such as
- self-control and improved waiting skills
- gaining a deeper understanding of the issue
- developed humility and patience
- leads to transformation and spiritual development
- growth in faith.
Benefits of fasting and Prayer
Emotional and Mental Well-Being Focus and Mental Clarity: By blocking out distractions and lowering obsessions with daily tasks, prayer and fasting can help people focus and create space for deliberate introspection.
Decreased Stress and Anxiety: During fasting, setting aside time for meditation, prayer, and worry release can help people feel less stressed and anxious and develop a more tranquil outlook.
Improved Self-Control: Consistent fasting develops self-control and the capacity to withstand temptations, which can be applied to other aspects of life, such as breaking unhealthy habits or choosing better options
Freedom from Attachments: People who fast frequently gain awareness of and liberate themselves from harmful attachments to food, technology, or other dependencies, which results in increased peace and freedom.
You now know what may cause a christian to seek God’s and face and guidance daily. Have you enjoyed this post? Do you fast and pray? and what are your experiences and results? Please leave me a comment and also share.