KNOWING GOD

Every day you have the opportunity to get alone with the God of the universe. One of the biggest things that gets in our way is perspective. If we feel like it is a Christian chore, it will feel like a burden and really won't be very rewarding. If you see it as a privilege and expect God to meet you there, hearing your prayers and even talking to you it should actually get you excited! The one thing God desires most is time alone with His children, loving on them and filling them up with who He is. It is in His presence we are changed.

John 17:3 NIV "Now this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." I used to believe eternal life was when I got to heaven. When I studied this verse, I realized eternal life starts now! Jesus literally defined eternal life as knowing God. I have the opportunity to KNOW God the best I can here in this lifetime.

You Live What You Know

Matthew 7:23 NIV “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and, in your name, perform many miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never KNEW you. Away from me you evildoers!” What we truly believe will be represented by how we choose to live our lives. It can be easy to replace knowing God with work, hobbies, church attendance, ministry, or even reading your Bible for knowledge. If you don't have intimate prayer time with the Lord, the scriptures you read will not come alive in you with God's loving heart. Knowlege puffs up, but it is love that edifies. Having time alone with God to just listen, ask a question and chew on it, and mull over scripture allows a quiet place to hear the Lord speak to you. The word edify means "to instruct or improve," and the Lord will edify you as you spend intimate time with Him. I think we have all met a few Christians that know the Bible well but were super grumpy and have missed the call of Jesus to become love. They just don't know God as well as they could. This means it is about relationship. (Discussed more in Jesus Commanded Us to Love).

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Rest in the Lord vs working to earn his favor.  You have already won His favor, He sent his son to die for you! Works is anything done apart from the Holy Spirit. Our prayer life should come from a place of rest as well, not striving. 

Knowing God Transforms You

It is through KNOWING HIM you are transformed. 2 Corinthians 3:18 We go from faith to faith and glory to glory. “But we all, with unveiled faces, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory.” You approach the Lord with an unveiled face, like a beautiful bride. Boldly and with confidence approaching the presence of God.  It’s in this place that you are transformed into His image from one place of glory to an even higher place of glory as you continue standing in His presence. You are fueled to live the Christian life without striving or becoming legalistic (rules without love), trying to earn salvation.  We are not robots, God does not want us mindlessly doing work for Him.  We are beloved sons and daughters, and because we have tasted His goodness and seen how good He is, we WANT to reveal His kingdom to the world.

By knowing Him and His love, fear of death falls away.  Fear of man falls away.  Fear of what you have to give up to follow Him disappears. Your heart aligns with Him, and you see how good He is and want more. It is the goodness of God that leads to repentance (turning from sin). His perfect love casts out all fear.

How to talk with God

Ephesians 3:12 “In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.” Go to God in confidence and freedom that He WANTS to spend time with you. Because of Jesus you are totally clean and righteous, able to go boldly before the Father. 1 Peter 4:7 “The end of all things is near. Therefore, be clear-minded and sober, so that you can pray.” Berean Standard Bible. It takes self-discipline and an act of your will to get alone with God. Sometimes I have to stay up till 1:00AM to get the time I need. I also know if I'm struggling to have a clear-mind I have usually been allowing other things to occupy my thoughts instead of the Lord. If I don't get much sleep, I know God will give me the grace the following day to accomplish the tasks at hand. I also know I can look at my lack of sleep as a reason to have a bad attitude or I can look at Jesus who never gives me a reason for having a bad attitude. Time with Him first thing in the morning helps get my focus where it belongs so I can serve my family.

John 14:13 “And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” This is a promise from God. Ask and step out in faith and receive. If you ask for boldness, believe it and go be bold! If you ask to be fired up, believe it get on fire for the Lord.

2 Corinthians 3:3 “You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts." This verse is so meaningful because I was diagnosed with a short-term memory when I was a child.  I would read the Bible and try to memorize verses throughout my adult life, but it seemed like the verses would not stick.  I grew in understanding and always had a desire to share Jesus, but I realize I carried a lot of it as head knowledge and it hadn't gotten down into my heart in a way that transformed me. It was the intimacy I had with the Father that brought it to life. As I asked God questions like: What is grace? What is the finished work of the cross? Teach me about the power of the blood of Jesus. Help me understand the authority you gave me. Show me Your love for me. and more; these verses were written on my heart.  Because I fed on the Bread of Life, the living word, scripture will flow out of me without even trying. Because He has truly become my life, there is no trying.  When I lose focus of the Father I will stop and ask the Holy Spirit to show me the truth that is written on my heart. Sometimes there is a lie I am believing about myself, situation, or another person.  We can ask the Holy Spirit to show us His truth, which is often scripture buried in our hearts. Then renounce the lie, and put on truth.

John 10:27-28 NIV “My Sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.  I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. It is so important to know the voice of our shepherd.  This is something you can cultivate the more you practice and align your life with His will.

Follow Jesus’s example: Jesus was always slipping off to be alone with the Father. Luke 5:16 We also need to get away from the things of life regularly and prioritize this time. Matthew 6:5-8 NIV “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others.  Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.  But when you pray, go into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.  And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like the pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.  Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” God rewards those who seek Him in humility and faith.  Lift the prayers up on your heart like a fragrant offering, but trust the Lord hears them.  Sitting silent before the Lord is powerful, I honestly see things on my heart that are answered without even praying. Learn to receive from Him in your secret place. Make sure you leave plenty of time to sit and receive His love. Often you will hear Him speak in these times. Don't put a time frame on it; take all pressure of time off by turning your clocks and putting your phone aside.

Philippians 4:6-7 NIV “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. When you spend time with God come to Him with any anxieties you are having. Trust Him to take these things from you and to walk you through it. Come with thanksgiving, God loves a thankful heart.

John 15:5 NIV “I am the vine; you are the branches.  If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”  I encourage you to read all of John 15. As you train yourself to abide in the Lord and hear His voice you will find your life will become more fruitful for the Kingdom of God.  If you squeeze an orange, you get orange juice, if you squeeze a Christian why don't you get Christ? Instead, we often see hurt, offense, worry, anger, frustration, or victimhood. The more we abide in Him the more we will produce Christ in our life.

Hebrews 4:12 NIV “For the word of God is alive and active.  Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." The word of God is living.  As you pray over the word and ask the Lord to search your heart, He will show you where your attitude and thoughts are outside of Him.  One day I was outside working and my husband was in with my son and my attitude got grumpy, I kept trying to shake it off and I could not. I started praying over 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 and when I got to envy this lightbulb went off.  I never thought of myself as a person that had envy, but the Holy Spirit made me realize I was envious of the fun things my husband was doing with my son while I was working. That gave me the opportunity to renounce that lie and to bless my family and to thank the Lord I had a husband that enjoyed my son. As you pray over scriptures the Lord will use them to purify you and call you to a deeper place.

2 Timothy 1:7 NIV “For God has not given us the Spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound-mind (or self-discipline). This is another promise. These are important character traits to recognize in God and traits the Lord said He also gave you. You can stand on this verse when you are not seeing these realities in your life. Stop and pray over them. Other translations say self-discipline.  This is a key element to getting alone with God.  Even on days when you do not feel like it or cannot think straight.

Let us practice hearing from the Lord

First command all other voices to be quiet: the enemy and your own carnal mind. Ask Holy Spirit to speak to you in a powerful way. Expect a response. It will seem like your own thought. Be confident it is from God as long as it lines up with scripture.

·        Jesus how do you feel about me?

·        Jesus, would you reveal to me any lie I am believing?

·        Jesus will you show me how to put on the new identity you gave me?