A sound warning – some will make it to the kingdom but not all will receive a reward. Now, the question is why and how is that possible? It is possible because of our refusal to personally seek God’s will. 

Majority of us want to do the bare minimum and want God to beautify us with the crown of glory. We cannot elevate traditions and doctrines such as church attendance, giving, administrative works, and other types of services, above the time needed to spend seeking God personally. The services mentioned above are important, but not as a replacement to the time spent individually in God’s presence.

There is no comparison to the time we give to have personal fellowship with God. God only rewards those who diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6). And being diligent is the commitment to linger in His presence. He is the approving source for all His plans for our lives. Approval only comes from Him; and not from anywhere outside of His presence.

If you’re working in an organization, you know you cannot embark on a project without getting approval from the appropriate authority. And after getting the approval, and through the different phases of the project, you still have to check in with your boss to make sure you are still on the right track with the original plan. 

No one will applaud or praise us for doing what we want in any organization; unless what we are doing is according to the plan and intent of leadership. It is essential we work hard to understand and meet the demands of the organization we are a part of. A reward is sure if we stick to God’s “Main Plan” and not deviate from it (1 Corinthian 3).

Why will anyone engage in a project not approved by the authorities he/she works for? Why would anyone want to labor in vain? What is the point of participating with no plan of winning? Why wouldn’t you want to take advantage of the opportunity available to us to learn from God and be aligned with His plans?  

God’s plan is simple enough for us to be able to make the right choices. We can choose between doing what we want to do or doing what we have God’s approval for. Some might ask why we need His approval when we already have His written word to point us in the right direction. Well, we need to understand that the word is a great guideline for what we need to do. But there are things that are specific to individuals and generations which require a one on one encounter with and approval from God. 

One of the challenges people have is trying to interpret the things of God using ‘head knowledge’ because they think that spiritual things are all about a sense of reasoning. However, the bible already made it clear that God is a Spirit and we should seek Him in spirit and truth.

We therefore cannot coin an interpretation of spiritual things using our natural ideas. The ways and the agenda of God are completely different from what we can think up. God is Spirit. He is not a man that we can relate to using our sense knowledge. This is why we need to access the realm of the spirit to communicate with Him. And what better way is there than to achieve this than spending one on one time with Him? Time spent with God is essential.

The most transforming experiences of our lives will always be those where we encounter God directly. Moments we spend with God provide us with an assurance of the things we are not too certain about. God’s agenda is not for His children to only read and understand the Bible; He also wants to have direct communication with every single one of us. 

His intention for living in us is to avail us with uninterrupted communion with Him. But somehow we have assumed that God wants to be left alone and does not want to be bothered. This is not true. God asks us to come and reason together with Him (Isaiah 1:18).

One of the ways to reason with Him is to set our minds on His will. Our mind is the battleground where we process what goes in and out of our lives. If we set our mind on God, we will continually think His thoughts. On the other hand, if we set our minds on something else, then that is what will occupy and dominate our minds. And whatever dominates us is what influences our decisions and our behaviors. As we set our minds on the things of God through meditating on His word and speaking to Him, His peace will guide us daily.

When meditating and seeking the things of the Spirit, we need to allow God’s word to lead our thoughts and influence our decisions; not the other way around. To submit to the truth is to allow the word dictate, and not our own reasoning. We let the word take over our mind; and not our mind filtering the word through personal interpretations that suit us. 

Finally, we need to understand that God has something unique to show and teach us every single day. There are deposits of God’s revelations for us daily and we have to position ourselves to receive them. What is in store for us has nothing to do with religion; it is plainly the principles that will change and continue to transform our lives daily. 

The bible says today if we hear His voice, we should not be stubborn but do the right things. There is reward for our labor if our works are approved by Him. We should therefore seek God’s approval and ensure our plans are in sync with His.