Intimacy

I was pondering this morning on God's goodness and I couldn't help but think about the encounters, experiences and lessons I have had with Jesus. And then I began to think about what a blessing and encouragement it is to hear about other's stories and God began to speak to my heart. May we fully experience God’s love for ourselves. As good as it is, we cannot live off of what other people experience and their encounters. We must taste and see for ourselves.
 

Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. Psalm 34:8 NIV

Drink deeply of the pleasures of this God. Experience for yourself the joyous mercies he gives to all who turn to hide themselves in him. Psalm 34:8 TPT

The Passion Translation says, “The Hebrew root word for see is taken from a word that means to drink deeply." What does it really mean? That we don’t need just a sip of God. You know that saying, “A little dab will do”?! That’s definitely not the case with Jesus. We are called to drink deeply and that means each and everyone of us.

God created us to have an intimate relationship together. It can be so easy to want to reap the reward from someone else’s harvest but that won’t get you very far. Hard work and perseverance pays off and so does experiencing things for yourself. You know those times you hear people talking about something and inside you immediately connect with them and what they’re saying because you have personally been there yourself. It’s like the difference between book smarts and street smarts. There’s nothing quite like going through something, enduring the trials, rejoicing in the reward, and fully living your life for God. Nothing compares to intimacy with God and fully knowing who He is, experiencing Him for yourself, and making memories together.
 

There’s a mentality in the world today that tricks us into thinking we don’t have to put in hard work and figure things out for ourselves but rather just live off someone else. This mentality is a form of laziness and causes us to want to always eat from someone else’s plate instead of fixing our own. And while there’s nothing wrong with sharing, God wants a personal intimate relationship with you; not just mutual friends. You know those people that you don’t really know on a personal level, just through mutual friends on Facebook. And while you follow their life on social media and like their posts you still don’t really know a thing about them besides what you see through there.

Fear lies to us by convincing us relationships aren’t for everyone. You could get hurt so just keep your distance. Why put in the work when I can get the same thing for less work?

Wrong.

There is no bland, one sizes fits all with Jesus. There’s only intimacy. He wants all of you. He wants you to know the deepest parts of His heart and walk through every valley and mountain top with you. Open up. Let Him in. Invite Him to be a part of everything you do and who you are.

We can be sure that we’ve truly come to live in intimacy with God,  not just by saying, “I am intimate with God,” but by walking in the footsteps of Jesus. 1 John 2:5-6 TPT

Continue to grow and increase in God’s grace and intimacy with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. May he receive all the glory both now and until the day eternity begins. Amen! 2 Peter 3:18 TPT

Listen here. Intimacy by Jonathan David Helser

Blessings,

Joanna