Early will I seek You

O God, You are my God;
Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land
Where there is no water. – Psalm 63.1

Here we are in 2017. That still sounds like the opening line of a futuristic science fiction novel, but here it is. People are talking about resolutions and new beginnings and hopes and aspirations and all of those kinds of things. How can we improve on last year? How are we going to face the unknowns of a new year. The slate is clean, my journal is empty, what are we going to do with it?

Psalm 63 has a pretty good suggestion.

O God, You are my God.
Early I will seek you because my soul thirsts for you and my soul longs for you.

I think we need to ask ourselves what we are longing for as we enter this new year. Are we longing for wealth or prosperity? Are we longing for popularity and position? Are we longing for ease and comfort? What are we desiring from this year? Are we, like the psalmist, longing for the Lord with the fervency of a parched and famished people seeking for water and food?

I think today could be a test of that. Are we going to start the the year by seeking after the Lord as early in the year as we can? There is no need to wait. Today is Sunday. Start the year right by seeking at church in the fellowship with His people. Seek God early by starting the year with a Bible reading programme. Seek Him early by starting today to spend time in Bible study and prayer.

2017 is sure to have its problems. The only way to deal with them is to seek God early in the early and to seek Him early in the day.

Today, New Years Day, is the perfect time to start.