Word
I'm a huge advocate for being in the Word, but not for the reasons you'd probably expect. I think a lot of people believe that you just need to be in the Word because as a Christian you're "supposed" to, or because it will somehow make you live better, or because you need a list of rules, etc.
And I used to be one of those types of people.
As a result, I lived in constant failure. I wasn't looking to the Word to give me life, I just did it because it was the "right thing" to do. Eventually, doing something out of obligation will cause you more guilt than you want to deal with or it will become so dull that you will stop.
But now, ever since God revealed some of what it means to have Him as my First Love, being in God's Word means so much more to me. It's God speaking to me! Showing me what He's like, letting me in on His ways, sharing things about Himself. I think we all want that, but we tend to look for it in people. People are great, and people can complete part of us. I believe that God has wonderful purpose in relationships between people. But they will always disappoint. Perfect satisfaction and intimacy comes from God.
Do you believe that?
Like, really believe it?
What if we actually got that?
What if we understood that the God of the universe, who created us, who created the world, who raised Jesus to life, wants us to know Him intimately, and to be completely and intimately known by Him?
Like, what if the reason we got in the Word wasn't just to improve ourselves, but to find out about this awesome God who we claim to have a relationship with?
I can tell you this much, when I'm not in His Word, my relationship with Him suffers greatly. No, it's not that I have this feeling of guilt and so the relationship suffers. It's not because I haven't been "getting my fix" that I've become used to.
It's because I forget. I forget what He's like. I forget how much He loves and cares for me. I forget what He does. I forget to know Him.
I like to think about it in terms of human relationships, because it's easier to grasp that way. I know everyone uses that example, but just go with me there for a minute.
What if you claimed to be in a relationship with someone, but you rarely spoke to them, you rarely set aside time during the week to spend with them, you didn't really think of them throughout the day, you didn't really try to get to know them? You just assumed you already knew everything there was to know and that's it, or you waited until it would be more convenient to make the effort. What type of relationship would that be? It wouldn't be one at all. It would be one in name only, which in my opinion, is totally useless, even more useless than doing away with the thing altogether.
I see our faith the same way. What good is this relationship with Jesus if we don't make the effort? What good is it if we claim to be in love with Him, yet we don't even know Him? Don't even try to find out what He's like by reading about Him, don't even spend quality, uninterrupted time to just soak in His presence and all He has done for us? Can we even, with a clear conscience, say that we have a relationship with Him? I guess maybe we could...but that sounds to me like the loneliest, saddest, most disappointing relationship you could be in. It sucks to be in a relationship like that. And we weren't made for that.
We were made to know and be known. Completely.
If you claim Jesus, find out about Him. See what He's like. Read about His Father. Ask Him to open your eyes to the wonder of His great love. Ask Him to show you what this is all about.
It's one thing to know about God. It's another thing entirely to know God. We won't know everything about Him until we reach eternity. But we can know Him here. We can experience Him here. And trust me when I tell you, even though it's difficult, it's the most rewarding thing ever to love Him. It's what we were made to do...
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I'm so glad you posted this. I needed to hear this. You should totally be a pastor. I'm praying that God will make it possible for you to get into Hillsong. I think you'd be great! :)
ReplyDeleteI love the way you put this! I needed some motivation and this did it. :)
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