Casandra Martin

Have you ever been on a diet? The key to shaping up really falls into two categories. First, you have to incorporate some new habits into your routine. You start walking, looking for new recipes, shopping with a different eye, and following a healthy eating plan. Second, there are unhealthy behaviors that need to go. No more junk food, couch sitting, or excuse-making. Tackling both sides of the equation gives you the best opportunity for transformation.

What is true for our bodies is true for our souls. If we want to look like Jesus, we need to work in this same rhythm and balance – fill and empty, add and release, or, as the wisdom writer teaches us, “…a time to seek, and a time to lose:” (Ecclesiastes 3:6a)

Here is a list of ten things that you will lose when you seek after God:

Seek grace – Lose guilt

Seek peace – Lose fear

Seek joy – Lose discontentment

Seek righteousness – Lose shame

Seek purpose – Lose hopelessness

Seek zeal – Lose apathy

Seek His glory – Lose pride

Seek love – Lose loneliness

Seek surrender – Lose stubbornness

Seek quietness – Lose worry

My Jesus Resolution today is to seek and lose. Too often, I am fixated on what I need to lose, but don’t realize that when I seek Him, the losing will come easier. Keeping my heart focused on imitating Jesus will gradually train my soul to reflect His image and live under His reign. Seeking His face challenges me to lose the obstacles that stand in the way of His glory, and fills me with the attributes and habits that give me the best opportunity for transformation.