5 Steps To Radical Intimacy With God
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Intimacy with God tends to be this nebulous idea that most Christians doubt they will ever truly experience. However, I think otherwise…
“Here’s what I want you to do: Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.” Matthew 6:6 MSG
This scripture helps us realize two very important things about a devoted, transforming, life-giving, intimate life with Jesus – and how spending time with God is so important in the midst of this run we call life. I hope these simple points bless you, and encourage you to go a little bit deeper in your intimacy with God.
5 Steps To Radical Intimacy With God
- Bring People Along Your Journey.
If you are having trouble understanding God’s Word, ask someone for help: where to start, what version to read, how to read and interpret scriptures, etc. There are no stupid questions when it comes to reading the Bible. The answers on the other end of your vulnerability to ask are so worth it. Start a Bible study together, read the same books, encourage one another in pure love. We were designed with a need for community, so it’s time to bring people along your journey. - YOU Need to Show up During Your Devotional Time.
“..so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage.”
I find it so easy to just read my Bible, pull out a couple good points, pray a short prayer, and call my devotional time with God for the day finished. The reality is, I don’t think I really ever showed up! I mean the real me, the full me – with an open hand. What if I shifted my attitude to the verse above? How much more of Jesus can we get to know by not role-playing through our devotions? What if we allowed ourselves to come to him as simply and honestly as we can manage? I believe God pours out His grace when we share our most vulnerable heart and moments with Him. - God Always Shows Up.
This one doesn’t need much explaining. God promises that as we seek, we will find and as we knock the door is opened (Matt 7:7). You can be sure that if you show up to spend time with God, He will always join you. I have a friend who once told me, ‘when you are brave enough to put one foot forward to take a step, I can guarantee that God will always take ten steps towards you.’ - Find Your Place.
“Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God.”
You have the freedom to devotional (it’s a verb, now) however works best for you. Find your reading space and place, get alone with God, and listen to His voice speak to you through His Word. My place is in the morning at the kitchen table with a cup of english breakfast tea. Here I have 20-30 uninterrupted minutes to talk, read, and be with God. If you are an evening person, find your space and place. Write, sing, draw, speak – get creative in the ways that you spend time with God. - An Honest Conversation and a Heartfelt Focus Shift
“The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.”
Spending time with God shifts your focus from insecurities, doubts, tiredness and problems to God and who He is. As you spend uninterrupted time with Him, you begin to sense His tangible presence and grace. One of the most beautiful things about the grace of God is that it’s tangible, meaning you can feel it, experience it, and walk in it. He calls us into an unforced rhythm with Him, walking and working with Him. What you focus on affects your attitude, what you see, and what you say. This is what makes your personal devotion time so important. Have honest conversation with Jesus, share your heart with Him. Think of any meaningful relationship you have, both parties interact with one another and show each other acts of thoughtfulness. It’s the same in your relationship with God. Give God room to help you shift your focus from you to Him and a sense of His tangible grace.
I hope you feel encouraged to be intentional in the time you spend with God. Make of most of it. Bring people along your journey, show up, find your place and space. It’s really not complicated – just have a simple and honest conversation with Him.