The Things They May Chase

There is an Andrew Peterson song that says,
"Well I wish that I could say that at the close of every day I was happy with the way that I'm behaving.
'Cause Job, he chased an answer. The wise men chased the Child. Jacob chased her 14 years and he captured Rachel's smile. Moses chased the Promised Land. Joseph chased a dream. David, he chased God's own heart. All I ever seem to chase is me.
Well, they say a race can only have one winner. And you know you've got to pull out front to win. God knows the only time I'm winning is when I'm chasing Him."

We are all born with a deep desire in our hearts for wholeness, fulfillment and unwavering love. It is the quest for Eden, the longing for the complete and perfect relationship we once had. And since the garden gate slammed shut, we have been chasing fulfillment from all sorts of things. As the years pass, our children have more and more choices when it comes to what they will chase. Will they chase social acceptance? Attention from the opposite sex? Financial success? Sedation from drugs, alcohol or prescription medication? Will they chase the world? Will they chase the flesh? Or will they chase the things of God?
Our kids have a very real enemy that would love for them to spend their lives chasing things that take glory away from God. He would love for their desires, strivings and energy to be fruitless. But the Lord says, "I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me." (Proverbs 8:17) We need to be in prayer that our children would spend their lives chasing, seeking and finding the King of Kings. We need to pray that their hearts would desire all that is good, right, perfect and holy. For them to spend their lives fearing the Lord (as in: to lovingly respect and be in awe of our powerful and holy God), we must pray that their hearts are drawn to his ways.

Lord,
We pray for our children's hearts to be drawn to you, your ways and your desires. As they sense the void that is in them that was left when the relationship was broken in Eden, let them also sense that only you can fill it. We pray that they would not waste their lives chasing after other things to fill that void, but that they would realize early that a relationship with you is the only thing that will ever fill and heal their hearts. And if ever our children choose to buy into the lie that the things of this world are worth chasing, we pray that they would quickly realize how unfulfilling their strivings are, and that they would be drawn back to you.
Give them a longing and a love for "whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable... excellent or praiseworthy" (Phillipians 4:8). We pray that their hearts would fear you and that they would join David in being men and women after your own heart. We ask that as you form and shape their hearts, that you would plant in them a love for your Word, your laws and your truth. Let wisdom and discernment be qualities etched deep within them, that when confronted with the choice to chase after other things they would be able to make the right decision. Please bring friends into their lives that also love and chase after you, that they can encourage one another and spur one another on towards love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:24).
Above all, Lord, we pray that our children would seek you and find you when they seek you with all their hearts. And when their time here is over, let it be said of them that they spent their lives chasing after the very heart of God.

Scripture to Claim:

But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation always say, "The LORD be exalted!" Psalm 40:16

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:13

The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, turning a man from the snares of death. Proverbs 14:27

With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth. I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. Psalm 119:13-15

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Matthew 5:6