Seek and yee shall find (ritual, church, recall, pray)

[Phasmid]

My Bible knowledge is feeble, so forgive me if this is wrong, but I recall reading in the Bible, "Seek and yee shall find, ask and it shall be given, knock and the door will be opened". The meaning here seems pretty clear - if you honestly seek God, you'll find Him, if you ask of Him, He will give, if you go to Him, He'll let you in.

Asking seems to suggest prayer, knocking seems to suggest asking to be let in... but what about this whole, "seeking" aspect? I wonder what actually qualifies as seeking in God's view.

What qualifies as seeking God? Is it scientifically analysing the evidence and trying to find Him through evidence-based questioning? Is it blocking out all reason and starving the brain of knowledge of the universe until nothing but spirituality is left? Is it forcing yourself to go to Church without believing and hoping that one day something will change your mind? Is it all the above? None of the above?

It seems to me that anyone who actually wants to find God, but has a rational mind, is going to be left out in the cold.

[ChristineES]

I don't think people who are rational are left out in the cold at all. God does not separate from humans, humans separate from God-- at least that is what I believe.

Granted, some people need a physical proof of God-- some big guy with a white beard? A loud booming voice telling folks to believe or else? DNA evidence of God?

The fact is that I believe there is evidence of God. You don't have to look for it, it is there in nature, in humans, and so on. The fact that there are some who think I am delusional or plain stupid does not bother me at all.

[Somkid]

I guess it depends on what one is seeking.

[tomspug]

If you are seeking only scientific evidence, scientific evidence is all you will find. Not to say that there is not scientific evidence for God, but your faith in Him will be based SOLELY on scientific evidence.

If you ask for God to show you miracles, you may see or find miracles, but your faith will be based SOLELY on that.

However, if you ask for God to reveal Himself to you, with an open mind, maybe you will be given exactly what you were looking for.

[sojourner]

Originally Posted by Phasmid

My Bible knowledge is feeble, so forgive me if this is wrong, but I recall reading in the Bible, "Seek and yee shall find, ask and it shall be given, knock and the door will be opened". The meaning here seems pretty clear - if you honestly seek God, you'll find Him, if you ask of Him, He will give, if you go to Him, He'll let you in.

Asking seems to suggest prayer, knocking seems to suggest asking to be let in... but what about this whole, "seeking" aspect? I wonder what actually qualifies as seeking in God's view.

What qualifies as seeking God? Is it scientifically analysing the evidence and trying to find Him through evidence-based questioning? Is it blocking out all reason and starving the brain of knowledge of the universe until nothing but spirituality is left? Is it forcing yourself to go to Church without believing and hoping that one day something will change your mind? Is it all the above? None of the above?

It seems to me that anyone who actually wants to find God, but has a rational mind, is going to be left out in the cold.

I hope you're not saying that faith is not (or cannot be) reasonable.

[doppelgänger]

Originally Posted by Somkid

I guess it depends on what one is seeking.

As you seek, so shall you find.

Some wisdom from Daryl Zero that comes to mind on the subject of seeking:

"Now, a few words on looking for things. When you go looking for something specific, your chances of finding it are very bad. Because of all the things in the world, you're only looking for one of them. When you go looking for anything at all, your chances of finding it are very good. Because of all the things in the world, you're sure to find some of them."

[ChristineES]

One thing I have learned that if someone searches for something long enough, s/he will find it whether it is there or not.

[Willamena]

Originally Posted by Phasmid

Asking seems to suggest prayer, knocking seems to suggest asking to be let in... but what about this whole, "seeking" aspect?

Observation.