This week’s blog was written by my wife, Donna. I trust you will be challenged to take your relationship to a different level as you are encouraged by the Word.

Have you ever wondered what all is or should be involved in receiving salvation or coming into a right relationship with God? What do you think?

I’ve known some people, who if you would ask about their relationship with God, would have this to say, “Well, 20 years ago…,” or “When I was a kid…, or Ten years ago…,” and have nothing more to say. Sadly, for some, they believe that initial response and decision is all there is to it, or that the initial decision is sufficient!

If that has been your experience, I would like to challenge you today to sincerely consider what the possibilities and realities of an open, honest, “personal” relationship with God is! The life God desires to have with us is not just an “experience”, but it is to be a very real, very personal, very intimate relationship.

When God created the earth, (Genesis 1), He spoke and it was so, however, when He created man, “God formed man of the dust of the ground” and “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living being.” (Genesis 2:7). It was a very intimate moment when God breathed His breath of life into Adam. We know God fellowshipped with Adam and Eve in the cool of the evening in the Garden and they recognized His voice. Zephaniah 3:17 tells us, “He will rejoice over you with singing.” Jeremiah 36:3 reveals, “Your lovingkindness is better, than life..” Then we see in John 15:15b where Jesus said, “I have called you friends.”

I have some friends who began their life with a birth mother who was not able to keep and raise them. They were placed in adoptive homes and have had good lives. However, unless or until these friends discover and have a chance to meet and spend time with them, these friends have simply had an ‘experience’ with their birth mothers and not a ‘relationship’.

Our relationship with God begins when we realize that we are separated from God by our sin and can be reconciled to right relationship with Him by confessing and repenting from our sin. We also must acknowledge that Christ made a way for us to be reconciled to God by shedding His blood for us.

How does a relationship between a child and a birth mother, who gave their child to someone else to raise, turn into more that just an ‘experience’ of birth or even, just an ‘experience’ of reconciliation? How would a personal, intimate relationship between you and God take place? To develop a personal, intimate relationship requires time, effort, energy, and diligence. God + man = personal, intimate relationship. Interestingly enough if we look at Psalm 139, we find that half of the requirements for that equation are already in effect! Psalm 139:1-18 (NKJV), “O LORD, You have searched me and known me. 2 You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. 3 You comprehend my path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways. 4 For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O LORD, You know it altogether. 5 You have hedged me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me. 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it. 7 Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? 8 If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. 9 If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, 10 Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me. 11 If I say, "Surely the darkness shall fall on me," Even the night shall be light about me; 12 Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You. 13 For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb. 14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. 15 My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them. 17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! 18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You.” Wow!

For our part, we accept we are sinners, repent and confess our sins, and accept Christ’s sacrifice for us. Hear this though, doing these things causes us to have an experience with God, not necessarily have a relationship with Him. It is His desire that we move on from that experience with Him. How do we get to the personal, intimate part of the relationship? We see hints of how we can know God as intimately as God knows us in Psalm 139.

God reveals Himself to us through His Creation and nature. When you look at the sun, stars, moon, mountains, oceans, animals, aquatic life, birds, and mankind - it is astonishing! He created it all! God is a triune God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Did you know, if you split a banana gently with the tip of your tongue at the top, it will divide into three parts?! All fruits have three parts, i.e. the apple’s core, flesh, and skin. We see His glory and majesty in the vastness of His creation and in a magnificent sunrise or sunset.

However, the thing that reveals the most to us regarding the character and nature of God is His Word. In His Word, which was ‘given by inspiration of God’ (2 Timothy 3:16) we see:

Lamentations 3:22 (NLT), “The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease.” God is faithful and merciful!

1 John 4:8 (NLT), “ But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” God is love!

1 Peter 1:15,16 (NLT), “But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. 16 For the Scriptures say, "You must be holy because I am holy." God is holy!

Exodus 20:5 (NLT), “You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods.” James 4:4 and 5, (NKJV), “Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, "The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously"?” God is a jealous God!

Ephesians 4:32 (NLT), “Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.” God is forgiving!

1 John 1:8,9 (NLT), “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” He is just!

We see an amazing extended description of God’s nature in Psalm 145:3-20. I will give a summary of those verses. He is great, majestic, shows us the splendor of His majesty, does wondrous works and awesome acts. He is good, righteous, gracious, full of compassion, slow to anger, and great in mercy. He is good, powerful, eternal, and His dominion endures throughout all generations. He upholds, raises up, feeds, and satisfies the desire of all things! He is near, will hear, and preserves all who love Him.

You see, His Word gives us great revelation of Who He is and what He is like! Isn’t it wonderful to think of having a ‘relationship” with Him?

When we read Psalm 139, we saw how intimately He is acquainted with us. That same amount of intimacy is what He desires to have with us. Is it possible? Absolutely! If through this post, you have realized that your relationship with God is missing the intimacy he desires to have with you, it is not too late for you to enter into that type of relationship with Him.

What does it take? You taking the time to really know Him, as He has revealed Himself to you through His Word. It will come through your spending time in His Word, in prayer, and when you worship Him (He inhabits the praises of His people)! He tells us that we, His sheep, “know His voice” in John 10:10. (NKJV)

Prayer is conversing with Him. It is not just you bringing all your wants and wishes to Him, but a two way conversation, where you give Him a chance to speak to you. He may bring a scripture to your mind; He may bring a person’s name to mind; He may speak audibly to you; He might give you a dream; He could give you a vision.

Remember, God is all in, for a very personal intimate relationship with you.

NKJV New King James Version

NLT New Living Translation