This week’s devotions are based on the Week 6 “Explore God” – Is the Bible Reliable? (WATCH HERE)
1 John 3:1 See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!
What’s in a relationship?
Do you remember the first time you asked someone out on a date? You were nervous, a bit clunky and deathly afraid of being rejected. When the individual said, “Yes” you were happy inside and enjoyed going out on a few more dates after that. Then, perhaps, the questions got more serious as you wondered, “What is the status of our relationship?” “Are we just friends? Are we boyfriend/girlfriend? Are we exclusive? Etc.”
Relationships are a key part of our earthly interactions. We not only have a relationship with our spouse, but we have relationships with friends, co-workers, neighbors etc. Some people you have to have a relationship with and others you choose to have a relationship with and still others you desire to have a relationship with.
What makes relationships challenging is when you have to guess where you stand with that person. Are they a friend or foe? Are we good or not?
As we consider our final question of the series, “Can I know God personally?” one realizes that the intellectual answer to the previous question, while important, is not complete if there is not faith to believe the answers God gives to the questions.
Can I know God personally?
The short answer is, “Yes, you can.”
However, perhaps the place to start is not with the 10 steps to get to know God, but rather the answer to the question, “Does God want to know you personally?” This answer is “Yes, he does.”
Perhaps when we start with the question, “Can I know God personally?” we focus on what I have to do to get to know God. However, when we start with understanding how much God does because he personally knows and loves you, it quickly engenders the reaction, “Yes, I want to know this God who knows and loves me so well and so much.”
The Apostle John wrote in his first letter, “We love, because he first loved us.” This is true with every aspect of the Christian faith and life. It is always God’s love and relationship with us that leads us to have a relationship with him. When I see and understand God’s deep love for me, a natural response is, “Why wouldn’t I want to have a personal relationship with him?” God becomes the coolest kid on the block that everyone wants to be friends with. God becomes the most popular kid at the dance that everyone wants to dance with. He moves our response of faith by simply being the God who loves you so much.
And when he establishes his relationship with us in our hearts, we begin to see more clearly the wisdom and truth of the answers he gives to the six previous questions.
Apply: What aspect of God’s relationship with you moves you the most to believe more fully in him?
Prayer: Lord, thank you for doing all that was necessary to have a relationship with me. Lead my heart and my life to always live for and follow you. AMEN.