It's kind of weird how, as we go on in our lives, we tend to accumulate so much baggage. Strange little things remind me of this - like recently my purse strap broke and I started to transfer my "stuff" to a new purse. I found things in the old purse that I thought, "What's THAT doing there?" and found a place for it elsewhere. And it's true in life. The baggage gets heavier and heavier and we don't realize we're carrying a whole whack-load of stuff around that needs clearing out. Until something breaks or comes apart, something we took for granted perhaps.
Then we understand that God is all about relationship, much as we try to make it about impressing Him - or impressing others in His name. We figure if we spend our time doing things FOR Him that He'll be gratified. But that's not what He wants most. The most important word in His vocabulary is the word "WITH." That's basic. It's foundational.
God's promise "I am with you" appears again and again in the Bible. It takes many forms: "I surround you, I am your rear guard (i.e., "I got your back"), I will never leave you, I have carved you on the palms of My hands, and so many more assurances of His presence, His companionship, His help. The relationship, as stated in these passages, is not so much of a boss and employee as it is a friend or a parent. Now I know that some have a problem with either or both of these analogies because of bad life-experiences. But I can bet that there isn't one person among those people who hasn't fantasized about the ideal father or the ideal friend.
That's who He is.
He's about face-to-face relationship. Getting to know each other better and better, the feeling of being at home in each other's company, looking forward to the next encounter or the next adventure, exploring each other's many facets ... that kind of relationship. And over time, there is a growing sense of feeling comfortable enough with each other to share innermost thoughts and feelings, to make every day a living conversation which is fulfilling to both parties.
When that is first, we will take our cues from Him and we will naturally come in contact with those whose lives we were intended to touch. There will be nothing forced, no sense of duty involved. It will all be love-based, gratitude-based, relationship-based. And the artificial trappings we have built up, things based on shoulds and oughtas, musts and sposta's, will fall off like Punchinello's dots. (see my post called "You Are Special" [yes, that's a link] if you haven't already.)
And when we get tired - and we WILL get tired - we can rest in the one thing we know is solid: His love. We didn't have to go begging for a little attention; He took the initiative and came looking for us. We love Him, as 1 John says, because He first loved us. And what a love!! We can know that He is looking out for us, that He is singing with joy over us, that He is planning wonderful things for us.
There's something validating about all of that. It grows not only love, but trust, gratitude, grace, confidence, peace and so much more.
But it all starts - and ends - with the basics.
Then we understand that God is all about relationship, much as we try to make it about impressing Him - or impressing others in His name. We figure if we spend our time doing things FOR Him that He'll be gratified. But that's not what He wants most. The most important word in His vocabulary is the word "WITH." That's basic. It's foundational.
God's promise "I am with you" appears again and again in the Bible. It takes many forms: "I surround you, I am your rear guard (i.e., "I got your back"), I will never leave you, I have carved you on the palms of My hands, and so many more assurances of His presence, His companionship, His help. The relationship, as stated in these passages, is not so much of a boss and employee as it is a friend or a parent. Now I know that some have a problem with either or both of these analogies because of bad life-experiences. But I can bet that there isn't one person among those people who hasn't fantasized about the ideal father or the ideal friend.
That's who He is.
When that is first, we will take our cues from Him and we will naturally come in contact with those whose lives we were intended to touch. There will be nothing forced, no sense of duty involved. It will all be love-based, gratitude-based, relationship-based. And the artificial trappings we have built up, things based on shoulds and oughtas, musts and sposta's, will fall off like Punchinello's dots. (see my post called "You Are Special" [yes, that's a link] if you haven't already.)
There's something validating about all of that. It grows not only love, but trust, gratitude, grace, confidence, peace and so much more.
But it all starts - and ends - with the basics.
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