…He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
— Hebrews 11:6

Some people never see anything accomplished with their lives because they start and stop too many projects. But Hebrews 11:6 says that God “…is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

If you want to qualify for God’s reward and you know He has called you to do something, you have to be completely committed to pressing forward all the way until you have fully accomplished the assignment. For this, you need diligence to stick with it.

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In today’s Sparkling Gem, I want us to take a look at this phrase “diligently seek” and see how diligence is absolutely necessary to see any dream, vision, or calling come to pass. According to this verse, those who diligently seek God and His will are eventually rewarded!

The phrase “diligently seek” is a translation of the Greek word ekzeteo, a compound of ek and zeteo. The first part is the Greek word ek, which means out, and the second word is zeteo, which means to seek. When these words are compounded, the new word means to seek out. As used in Hebrews 11:6, it means to zealously seek for something with all of one’s heart, strength, and might. It conveys the idea of being hard-working, attentive, busy, constant, and persistent in one’s devotion to what he or she is doing.

If you and I take our life assignment lightly — approaching it with a casual, easygoing, take-it-easy, relaxed attitude — we’ll never go far in the fulfillment of our calling or dream. It takes hard work to achieve anything worthwhile, and complaining about how hard it is won’t make the process any easier. I always say, “Live like a slug, and you’ll eat dirt the rest of your life.” So unless we want to “eat a lot of dirt,” we have to make the decision to get up and put our hands to the plow! If you and I are serious about doing what God has told us to do, we must adjust our level of commitment and get to work. Being a hard worker is a part of being diligent.

If you and I want to see our dreams fulfilled, we must give our full attention to what God has called us to do. It must have our full consideration, our undivided attention, and our full mental and spiritual concentration. Ceaseless, around-the-clock, nonstop devotion is essential in order to be diligent.

When we are seriously pursuing what God has told us to do, we won’t have time for wrong attitudes and wrong thinking. To remain diligent, we must be engrossed, totally absorbed, and fully engaged. We must immerse ourselves in faith, prayer, and meditation regarding God’s call on our lives. All of this takes 100 percent of our focus and effort for us to accomplish what God has placed in our hearts. This is part of what it means to be diligent.

Being constant and consistent is also an essential quality needed to diligently pursue your God-given dream. Fickle, flighty, erratic behavior will never produce the fulfillment of God’s will in your life. It takes consistency and determination to push aside the powers of hell and obtain the victory you desire. If you and I constantly fluctuate — wandering back and forth and in and out of faith — we will never reap anything enduring for the Kingdom of God. To produce powerful results, we must be constant in our commitments. We must be “steady-as-she-goes” — fixed, unchanging, and steadfast. It’s all part of being diligent.

Persistence is also a key to remaining diligent. When a person is persistent, he refuses to relent. He is tenaciously immovable, even in the face of opposition, and unbending until his objective is achieved.

Withstanding opposition and braving adversity is just a part of the walk of faith. In order for us to resist attempts to abort our dreams, we must be persistent. This is the kind of commitment required to live and walk in faith.

With this in mind, Hebrews 11:6 could be read:

“God is a Rewarder of those who are hard-working, attentive, busy, constant, and persistent in their pursuit of seeking Him.”

A casual approach will never get you to the triumphant end of the spiritual race God has placed before you. You have to give 100 percent of your focus and energy in order to press through the barriers that will stand against you to keep you from making it to the finish line.

Diligence and all that it entails is a requirement for you to get to a place of victory. So now that we’ve discussed what diligence looks like, it’s essential that you make sure you’re right on track in this area so you can fully accomplish what God has asked you to do. Are you diligently seeking God and His will for your life? This is the perfect day to make sure your answer is yes!

MY PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father, I realize that I can apply more concentrated effort in my pursuit of You and Your will for my life. Thank You, Lord, for revealing to me the areas where I need to make adjustments and how I need to make them. I ask You for clearer revelation of my life’s assignment so I can walk with greater focus and commitment to fulfill that purpose — whatever may be required. Holy Spirit, I ask for and receive Your help to apply diligence and all that it entails. Strengthen me in my inner man to lay aside slothfulness in every area of my life so that I can experience the reward of those who devote themselves to seek Your will with all diligence. I receive fresh grace from you now, in Jesus’ name!

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

 

MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY

I choose to live diligently, and I refuse to live like a slug! I am zealous and persistent in my pursuit of God’s plan for my life. Instead of being fickle, flighty or erratic, I am hardworking, attentive, busy, and constant! I give earnest attention to being a consistent doer of the Word of God. As a result, my mind is continually being renewed, and my thoughts are conformed to be in agreement with God’s will. I inspect and evaluate my ways on a regular basis. As I do this, I am quick to make any adjustments necessary in order to persevere in the fulfillment of God’s will for my life.

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

 

QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER

1. If you asked God whether or not He saw diligence working in your life, what would He say to you? Be honest with yourself, because God will be completely honest with you if you ask Him to help you answer this important question.
2. In what ways does your life demonstrate diligence? If you possess this quality, it should be recognizable in your daily life, so identify some ways you show diligence.
3. In what areas do you lack diligence, and what are you willing to do to bring diligence into those aspects of your life? It would be helpful for you to write your thoughts about this question on a piece of paper so your eyes can see them.  That might be uncomfortable for you to do, but if you really want to grow in diligence, you must be willing to confront any area of your life where a lack of this quality still tries to define you.