Do I Want to See God?

Written on 09/04/2018
James Clarence

Written by James Clarence 

Matthew 5:8
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.”

Have you ever found it difficult to remain pure in today’s society? Have you ever had thoughts pop up in your mind that you have no idea where they are coming from? Have you ever struggled with the reality that media, social networking, news, and culture are constantly bombarding you with their version of what is right and socially acceptable? This verse we read can be a challenge, because if you’re reading this, I’m assuming you want to see God. You want to experience Him, you want to feel Him, you want to hear His voice. 

But have you ever found it to be a quite the task? To unplug, disconnect, tune out from what you are being indoctrinated with by the world? I have. Now, oftentimes when we think of “purity,” we automatically assume it has something to do with a sexual aspect of life—which I won’t argue against, but in this short article, I’d like to take it a step further. 

We need to get really honest with ourselves, evaluating every thought (2 Corinthians 10:5), taking them captive and making them submissive to God. So, get honest by asking yourself these questions: 

  1. What’s motivating you to get up in the morning?
  2. Where do you find your affirmation from? Likes or followers on Instagram? The compliment on your outfit at school or work?
  3. Where do you find your purpose? Is it from your education, job or career?

Maybe there are thoughts in your mind that you’d be embarrassed to tell someone, that you can’t believe they popped into your head? You see, I have a lot of these. For an example, if I were honest with you, my greatest temptation is taking credit from God for the things He’s done. That I had more to do with why that youth night or service was successful versus the reality that God actually did 99.9% of the work. 

I hate the reality that my mind goes there, and when it does, my spirit rebukes my mind for even thinking about taking the credit. But on that note, does it ever frustrate you that sometimes it feels like you can’t control your thoughts? That all of a sudden you’re in church and BAM a bad thought pops into your head? Yep. Me too. Drives me crazy. So how do we overcome this? How do we find victory in our thought life so that to be pure in heart become our reality, so that we can see God? 

When I was a kid, my mom used to sneak into my room at night and play the Bible on tape. Yes, I said tapes. Ya’ll probably don’t know what that is! Anyways, in the morning, I’d be annoyed because some guy who sounded a lot like Morgan Freeman woke me up at night. I’d shut it off and get mad at her in the morning. Then she would always say to me, “James, the world is going to try to control your thoughts, which will make you feel dirty and impure. So what do you do when you’re physically dirty James? You take a shower. You clean up. ‘So, this is how we clean our mind, by the washing of the Word of God (Ephesians 5:26).’”

Now am I saying that we will be set free from bad thoughts by just playing the Bible on tape, or on a podcast? No, but if we actually pay more attention to what God’s Word has to say to us than our culture does, we will definitely see purity of heart come. If we waste more time on being with our Heavenly Father than we do on social media or Netflix, hearing what He thinks about us, we will most certainly see God. If we put God’s declaration of who we are above what our peers say over us, will we see God? Yes. If we daily process every thought through the filter of scripture and the life of Jesus, will we continue to be jaded and influenced by the world? Nope. 

So we have a choice to make. Do we want to see God? I’m assuming your answer is yes. Then the question is, are we willing to make the sacrifice that it costs to sustain a pure heart? Are we willing to recalibrate our life around what God says through the Bible and through our spirit? It’s a tough sacrifice, because it means not being up on every trend out there. It means not being influenced by the latest Netflix show. It means not making your priority to fit in with your friends at school. It might even mean for you, deleting your social media accounts, because that is where you take your cues from. 

Are you willing? ’Cause believe me when I say this—it’s worth it. It’s worth the sacrifice. It’s worth losing friends. It’s worth not being popular. Seeing God and experiencing His unconditional love for you is greater than anything we could ever experience on this earth. 

Making God’s plan for your life a reality is hands down the best life you could ever live. But here’s the catch: it all starts with your thoughts and purity of heart. So, if you control your thoughts, you won’t have to be worried about your actions, and you’ll be able to live out a life pure before God, to see all his plans come to pass for your life. This is the best thing we could ever partake in—simply to be in relationship with him. To see Him, feel Him, know Him and experience Him all the days of your life. So, will you go on the journey of developing purity of heart? I hope so. It’s not easy, but it’s worth it.