Did you know that God desires intimacy with you? I think one of the best things about being in Christ, is knowing that God knows our thoughts before we even think them. That should allow us to take the pretense off anything we say to Him. I never understood why Adam and Eve, created to experience a personal relationship with God thought after they sinned that they could “hide” from a God who is omnipotent. Of course, when I think about it, that’s exactly what we do when we sin ourselves – in shame, we try and “hide” from God. Which is simply “fruitless.” (Yes, the pun was intended. 🙂 )
Although we don’t walk around physically naked in this day and age before God, we ARE spiritually naked before Him. I feel as though that takes the “middleman” of pretense out of the equation, no point hiding from El Roi (the God who sees me) so we are free to be us – faults and all and to pray that God would as in Psalm 51:10 say:
“Create in me a clean heart Oh God and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”
In other words, “God – please help me to change my mind to be YOUR mind for me and for my life because I have chosen to live my life for You.” Or as the Apostle Paul wrote in the book of Galatians 2:20:
“I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
Instead of caring what this world thinks of us we need to focus more on what GOD thinks of us. Listen, we have a God who loves us SO much that He chose to come down from Heaven, wrap Himself in clothes of flesh to walk among us in an intimate manner to SHOW us His love. He LEFT Heaven to reside with us here clothed in humanity and then died a death He didn’t deserve to die for sins that WE (not Him) have committed. He paid the price that we should have paid. He rose from the dead in resurrection power and is seated at the right hand of the Father. WHAT ELSE DOES GOD HAVE TO DO TO GET OUR ATTENTION? TO SHOW US HIS LOVE? When I think about it and when I think about the way He has tried over and over again to get our attention, to show us He loves us and only desires for us to love Him back – I just want to wrap my arms around Him and say, “Thank You Father. Thank You for not giving up on me.” See Revelations 3:20:
“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”
“Thank You for loving me and for continuing to knock on the door of my life, relentlessly, patiently, diligently and allowing me to come to a place in my life, experience circumstances that would bring me to a point where I realized how much I needed You. Thank You for giving us Your Holy Spirit prior to Your ascension, who is our Advocate, our Teacher, our Comforter, our Guide.” (See John 14:15-18)
“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”
Many of us in this life have had the experience of loving someone who does not recognize our love. No matter HOW hard you try to show it, they are oblivious to it. Remember how you felt when you experienced that and then think about how much more magnified that is for a God who does everything BEYOND everything to show us HIS love. When you realize this, it is a humbling lesson. God created us in His image (read the book of Genesis). God has feelings. Perhaps we should stop being such a self-centered, entitled people and think for a moment on how WE treat God. A God who continuously throughout the course of time (and even now) has only our best in mind. We push away the One who loves us BEST.
Sometimes it is hard for us to receive God’s love because of what we have experienced in this life. That’s not an excuse not to, it’s a statement that may hit a bit close to home because we need healing. Listen, God doesn’t “love” as we love, His love is MUCH greater, MUCH wider, MUCH deeper than anything we have ever experienced. In fact, I don’t think we will comprehend the depth of His love until He calls us home to Him and we see Him as He sees us. But the Bible is FULL of God’s love for us. That is why it is so important for us to READ HIS WORD. The Bible is God’s love letter to us. It is full of EVERYTHING we need to learn about Him, to grow in Him. It is our guidebook to use throughout this life. It is His Living Word. I am always delighted and amazed when I open up my Bible and sentences JUMP off the pages that are in line with what I am feeling, experiencing or going through! It’s like Holy Spirit is sitting right beside me and guiding me with His finger to teach me and show me how to “get through.” God IS an Ever-present help. Beloved, I WISH I could reach out and cup your face with my hands and let you see the earnestness in my face when I tell you that GOD LOVES YOU. And it’s not a fable, it’s not fiction or make believe. He’s not a crutch – He’s REAL. And He IS El ROI – The God who SEES YOU and once you open your heart, open your mind, open your life to Him, His Spirit will FILL your soul. It doesn’t mean that life will get “easier” and we’ll run off skipping into the sunset as we live. (I won’t lie to you). But it means that through whatever comes your way, you will know that God IS with you and fill you with His overwhelming peace. He will personally BE there for you and Holy Spirit will SHOW you. Listen to words of Jesus, what He prayed to the Father before He endured the crucifixion in John 17:1-26:
“Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify You. For You granted Him authority over all people that He might give eternal life to all those You have given Him. Now this is eternal life: that they know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent. I have brought You glory on earth by finishing the work You gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify Me in Your presence with the glory I had with You before the world began.
“I have revealed You to those whom You gave me out of the world. They were Yours; You gave them to Me and they have obeyed Your Word. Now they know that everything You have given Me comes from You. For I gave them the words You gave Me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from You, and they believed that You sent Me. I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those You have given Me, for they are Yours. All I have is Yours, and all You have is Mine. And glory has come to Me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to You. Holy Father, protect them by the power of Your name, the name You gave Me, so that they may be one as We are one. While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name You gave Me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.
“I am coming to You now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. I have given them Your Word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that You take them out of the world but that You protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; Your Word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify Myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as You are in Me and I am in You. May they also be in Us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me. I have given them the glory that You gave me, that they may be one as We are One— I in them and You in Me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me.
“Father, I want those You have given Me to be with Me where I am, and to see My glory, the glory You have given Me because You loved Me before the creation of the world.
“Righteous Father, though the world does not know You, I know You, and they know that You have sent me. I have made You known to them and will continue to make You known in order that the love You have for Me may be in them and that I Myself may be in them.”
THAT is the God who created you. THAT is the God who forgives you. THAT is the God who sent His Son, Jesus to die on the cross for forgiveness of our sins and Who rose from the dead in resurrected power, IS seated at the right hand of the Father and IS coming back to get His bride – that bride is US Remnant. THAT is the God WHO LOVES YOU. And ALL He has ever wanted, is for us to love Him back. I think He MORE than deserves our love, let’s choose THIS day to show Him in whatever way we can that we hear Him! That we SEE Him! That WE LOVE HIM, because HE IS WORTHY of Our love. He really is…
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