The Seeking Heart

...And they were trying to bring him in and to set him down in front of Him. (Luke 5:18b NASB)

What a surprise I found when I was studying this verse today!  I was going through the interlinear Bible, checking every Greek word by the Strong number, and came to the words "trying to". I expected this word to mean "attempting".  Instead, I found that "zēteō", the Greek word used here, actually means seeking. These men were not just looking around. This is the word used for Herod's search for the baby Jesus, as well as the kind of seeking we are to do for the Kingdom of Heaven. It is also the seeking The Good Shepherd does for the one that has gone astray. This seeking is determined seeking that does not stop until the object of the search is found.

What a challenge! Those men were looking for a way to take the paralyzed man to Jesus, and they would not stop until they found it. If we were that diligent to find a way to take our loved ones to Jesus, I wonder if we would see more success. 

The encouraging part of this seeking is that our Lord seeks for His lost lambs with this same tenacity and determination. He seeks until He finds, so take heart that He is faithful in His efforts, even when we are not. 

Today, pray for zēteō (diligently, determinedly seeking) hearts that will not give up until all our loved ones have been brought to Jesus. Praise God, too, that He will not give up in His efforts to bring them back to Him.