SOAP - Deuteronomy 4:29-31

Scripture:

But from there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.  When you are in distress and all these things have come upon you, in the latter days, you will return to the LORD your God and listen to His voice.  For the LORD your God is a compassionate God; He will not fail you nor destroy you nor forget the covenant with your fathers which He swore to them.

Observation:

The “there” referred to in verse 19 is described in the preceding verses...Moses said if the sons of Israel rebel against the LORD He will scatter them among the nations and they will serve other gods.  Then Moses says “BUT.”  “But”... described by someone I knew as “the great eraser” (meaning it erases everything said before it).  BUT there is hope to return to the LORD.  

How?  “Search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.”  What happens then?  “For the LORD your God is a compassionate God; He will not fail you....”  There’s an assurance here.  A commitment.  He WILL NOT fail you.  He is COMPASSIONATE.  IF.  IF you “search for Him.”  This search, however cannot be half-hearted.  It must be “with all your heart and all your soul.”

Application:

There are times when I am half-heartedly expecting the LORD to rescue me from messes of my own making.  Should I be surprised when He does not?  When He does not, is that a poor reflection on Him?  NO!  It is a poor reflection of me.  If I cannot find Him, it is because I am not “search[ing] for Him with all [my] heart and all [my] soul.”  Because He has committed (here and in other places in Scripture) that He will be found.

Prayer:

Father God, forgive me for my half-hearted attempts to serve You.  Fill me with a passion for You that burns deeply within my heart and my soul.  I commit my entire self to You today.  And I trust You to do what I cannot.  “I believe, help Thou mine unbelief!”