INTIMACY WITH GOD JOURNAL
OCTOBER 2010
Opening – Like a child; godly dependency
Who Is Your BFF? (Best Friend Forever)- Do you have one?
*See Announcements: Aglow Muscatine rescheduled for next year.
Mike & Linda Schreurs holding newest grandson,
Gavin James Clarke
LIKE A CHILD
In the above recent photo, Mike and I are holding our latest grandchild. We’ve now been blessed with five. What fun!
It’s quite evident upon holding a newborn baby how utterly dependent they are on total care by their parents. When 1 Corinthians 15:46 tells us the natural precedes the spiritual, it’s obvious that spiritual newborns in Christ are also completely dependent on their Father God.
Let’s wake up! Who do we think we are that we can run and rule our own lives? Of course as an adult, it can be done. However, those foolish enough to do so, do it to their own demise. Detrimentally, some may not realize it until their second life begins in eternity. You’re not a cat with nine lives! God’s Word, His holy, divine Breath in
revealed scripture tells us plainly we have a temporal life and an eternal life. We do have two lives! However, what we do in the ‘now of today,’ determines the next one. Are you under the care of your heavenly Father God? Have you been ‘born again’ into His kingdom? (John 3:3) We are to come to the Lord like a child. It’s so simple. Jesus states in Matthew 18:3, “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
Our Divine Papa asks us to trust and obey Him explicitly. (Ps. 84:12) As with an earthly father, if we don’t, there are repercussions! The rod to the soul of the one who disobeys the Lord will experience eternal punishment in the bottomless pit called – hell. (Ps. 103:4) Why go there?! Give Him all control. It’s a marvelous way to live! Jesus Christ was BORN into this life that you and I might live happily ever after in the next one. His sacrifice for us at Calvary is an offer no one should refuse! It costs us nothing more than to praise, love, adore, trust and obey Him with our whole life. It’s time to excitedly embrace Proverbs 3:4, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.”
Oh how He loves you and me!
WHO’S YOUR ‘BFF’?
Most of you are familiar with the ‘BFF’ phrase seeing it frequently these days on Face Book, Twitter, TV talk shows, etc. It refers to whoever is your best friend forever.
But one has to ask, “Is that even possible in today’s transient society, even though we can ‘stay connected’ through all this modern technology? Does anyone actually have such long standing friendships?”
I’m sure many of you would agree that as seasons of our lives change, so do our close friends. People come and go through the years depending on a variety of circumstances including our careers, neighborhoods, raising children, retirement, and a host of other things.
But ‘back in the day’ of our parents and grandparents it seemed to be a much smaller world. And now, they can hardly grasp where we are. We’ve gone GLOBAL! Your BFF may be somewhere on another continent!
Last year we gave my mother a digital picture frame for her 80th birthday. She still can’t get over it, finding it extremely fascinating to her and my father. Our imaginations can run wild these days because it seems anything is possible. Technology has broadened our sphere of influence to engulf the world. It’s a blessing. But is it really? There is a caution flag in my spirit because it may be a detriment to upcoming generations not experiencing enough up close, in person, eye to eye contact. And I’m not talking about Skype! You can’t physically give someone a reassuring hug on a TV screen!
Loving effort
Certainly having close relationships of the up close and personal kind doesn’t just happen. One must put loving effort into it by carving out time to commune or fellowship together over coffee, lunch, dinner, a movie, a walk in the park or whatever. But it’s worth it to cultivate that BFF status isn’t it? Why? Because that’s the one person you know you can call in a pinch. They’ll be there for you! A mere acquaintance is most likely not going to do that for you because they don’t know WHO you are, they DON’T REALLY KNOW YOU!
I’m very excited to tell you there is a BFF waiting for you and He is the Holy Spirit! He has promised to never to leave you or forsake you and will be by your side through thick and thin, through every kind of pain, sorrow, sickness or any kind of loss this life can throw at you. He’ll be there in the joyful times too! (Deut. 31:6) He will be your BFF – truly, forever! There’s only one condition and that is, for you to love Him with all your heart, mind, soul and strength. (Mark 12:30) Additionally, you’ll have to spend time with Him cultivating your very important BFF status!
You see, far too many precious people go through the motions of doing lots of good deeds for God and it’s wonderful, but they really don’t know Him. Unless one spends intimate, up close, personal, quality, one-on-one time alone with Him on a regular basis, they may very well be deleting heavenly promises from their life!
Dear friends, let’s hold near and dear to our hearts the stark reality of Jesus’ admonition in Matthew 7:22-23. “Many will say to Me on that day,” {What day? Judgment Day!} ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.” These are not easy words to swallow. But it is truth, so let’s be fully aware of their impact. You and I can do all kinds of things – actions – for Christ, but do we really know Him? Do we have a personal on-going, daily relationship with Him? It must be so!
Relationship
Establishing the Holy Spirit as your Best Friend Forever does indeed require ‘relationship’ with Him. Demons believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, but they don’t bow to Him nor do they have a relationship with Him. Take note of Mark 1:23-24, “And just then there was in their synagogue {or church!}a man with an unclean spirit; {demon} and he cried out, saying, ‘What do we have to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are – the Holy One of God!’ And Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Be quiet, and come out of him!” This demon had the acquaintance of Jesus. He definitely knew who Jesus was because he called Him the ‘Holy One of God.’ Amazing! But he certainly did not, does not, nor ever will, have a personal relationship with Him!
In Mark, chapter 3, verse 11, we see this yet again, “And whenever the unclean spirits beheld Him, they would fall down before Him and cry out, saying, “You are the Son of God!” As stated before, these demons knew who Jesus was, they just didn’t KNOW HIM!
Follow with me to Mark 5 where it speaks of the demoniac from Gerasene who lived in the tombs. This demented man was possessed by a ‘legion’ of demons. The man actually bows before the King of kings, (everyone will, sooner or later, willingly or unwillingly; Philip. 2:9-11), then the evil spirit within him says: “What do I have to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore you by God, do not torment me!” Further down in verse 12 we read it again: “And the demons entreated Him saying, ‘Send us into the swine so that we may enter them.” The Lord grants the request, they enter the pigs, fall over a cliff, and die. Everyone became frightened! And they should! Wouldn’t you?!
Faith AND relationship
It’s a good thing to believe in God and tremble knowing His of power. But there’s so much more. Who wants to be on the same level as demons who also believe in Him? Belief alone simply is not enough. Its faith combined with RELATIONSHIP that makes the difference. It’s about a commitment of surrender of one’s entire life to the Lord God Almighty who loves us beyond measure. We must seek His face intimately, desiring an ever deepening relationship with Him. In the book of James, chapter 2, verse 19, we are told yet again that it’s just not enough to know who Jesus is, but to know Him personally, eye to eye, heart to heart. “You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe and shudder.” Why do they shudder? Because they know the Lord Jesus is God incarnate, the Lamb of God, born to die for humanity’s opportunity to have intimacy with God forever and ever. He promised to send the Holy Spirit who guides us into all truth, all comfort, all joy! (Acts 1)
So how about yourself? Where do you fit in? Are you simply acquainted with Jesus or do you actually know Him intimately? If you can’t answer the question, perhaps you’d better answer quickly in this very moment of ‘real time’ – NOW, in light of eternity knocking at your door! No one knows if they have tomorrow let alone the next minute.
Intimacy with God
The Lord is seeking intimacy with you just as He did with King David who was a man after God’s own heart. (1 Sam. 13:14) Don’t run from that, run to it! David is in scripture for a number of reasons. One is because he is a prime example of how we ought to always be in hot pursuit of our Lord. The devil surely doesn’t care, but we sure do! Revelation 3:16 tells us to be hot for God.
The Psalms are filled with the songs David wrote regarding his constant and ever burning, passionate desire to know God up close and personal. Psalm 63 is one of those which says in part: “O God, Thou art my God, I shall seek Thee earnestly; my soul thirsts for Thee, my flesh yearns for Thee in a dry and weary land where there is no water…{seeks purity}, Thy lovingkindness is better than life…My lips will praise Thee….I will lift up my hands in Thy Name {do you do this?!}…My mouth offers praises with joyful lips…my soul clings to Thee…” Can you hear the yearning of his heart? It’s quite clear the Lord was his BFF! Wouldn’t you love that kind of relationship in your own life? It’s possible!
A friend at all times
You’ve always got someone to talk to in the night or when that darkest night of the soul begins to haunt you. You’ve always got someone who will be there for you, but more than that – the Holy Spirit can do something about it! Your situation is not hopeless, but hopeful! Like the old, old song:
“What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear; oh what peace we often forfeit, oh what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry…everything to God in prayer.”
Remember it? Let’s become His close personal friend. Let’s spend time with Him in the garden of our soul where we can grow in depths of power and pleasure in Him beyond measure! There’s no one like the Lord God Almighty! As that old song continues:
“What a privilege to carry, everything to God in prayer.” (Song by Cecil F. Alexander)
We are so privileged to be let in on His eternal realm of heaven. Enter in!
Hot pursuit
When you engage your heart in this kind of passionate pursuit of intimacy with God, He will reveal astounding things to you! No wonder the book of Revelation was given to the Apostle John. He was the only one brave enough to put his head on the Master’s heart listening for the powerful, thunderous, ‘thump, thump’of glory embodied in human flesh! (John 13:23,25) Was he embarrassed? No! When Mary poured out her expensive perfume on Jesus in front of a crowd of spectators, was she embarrassed? I think not! Her eyes were focused on her savior, her king, her deliverer, sanctifier, healer, restorer. (John 11:3) How wonderful it was that Jesus first appeared to her after His Resurrection! We must ask ourselves, “Where is my focus? Is it on me or Him?”
Seekers of intimacy with God give no regard for what people think. Their only desire is to dwell in the Presence of their Divine beloved – at all costs!
Personally, just recently I had a beautiful divine moment during prayer in the middle of the night. My heart was so warmed I thought it to be on fire! It began to leap and pound with excited, holy glory at the Presence of the Holy Spirit. Oh His Presence is so glorious! I felt His love so intensely I thought I would burst with joy!
In those moments I began to sing unknown heavenly songs. I began to see heavenly things. I saw the redeemed of the Lord singing. I saw members of my family praising God on earth, and in heaven!
I began to journal:
“Whatever the sorrows have been, this is the hour I treasure above all things…to just be with You, Holy Spirit. To be in Your Presence is exquisite, heavenly, delight beyond human compare! My heart is engaged in extravagant, pure, holy, love divine, captured by our Eternal King of glory!
Manifest Thy power day after day as we seek Thy Living daily bread. O Divine, Magnificent One and Only heavenly Dove, Come! Fall on us once again!
It is as Ruth, I will come and lie down at Your feet till morning dawns. Let me glean in the fields of my sphere of influence for Your glory!” (Ruth 2 and 3)
I’ve experienced intimacy with God in various ways, many times. And I can tell you, it’s in those precious, personal moments that He reveals things I could not otherwise have known. It can be the same for you.
Many of you have experienced these things. But if you haven’t, seek for it now! The Lord has so much more for us if we’re just willing to open up our hearts a little wider, taking a bit more time to do so. Engage Him and He will engage you. In order for Him to be our BFF we will have to cultivate fellowship with Him.
Mark 4:34 shows us how He takes those closest to Him and gives them deeper revelations, insights, understanding and authority, power, grace, and so much more! That’s the kind of power we need in our lives today as many are being assailed on every side. Dear friends of God, isn’t it time to enjoy your Best Friend Forever? Step up your hot pursuit of the Holy Spirit in greater intimacy than you’ve ever known and watch your life change!