In the past couple of blog posts we’ve examined how hope and thanksgiving are the basis for prayer in general and, more specifically, for praying boldly and audaciously. And we’ve looked at our need to cultivate a habit of prayer rooted in a relationship with our Lord. I ended last month with this sentiment:
And so, dear brothers and sisters, yes, it is needful to discipline ourselves and make it a habit to pray. But to arrive at a lifestyle of prayer–one of praying without ceasing–our wisest course of action is to fall in love with Jesus. To be so captivated by who He is and what He’s done for us that we cannot help but want to love and serve Him. And out of the overflow of love and gratitude in our hearts, we begin a conversation with Him which never ends.
As Christians in the evangelical tradition, we talk a lot about how true Christianity is not a religion but a “relationship with God.” But what does that really mean, and how, exactly, does one develop a relationship with a spirit–the God of the universe, no less!–someone you’ve never seen before (and likely won’t until you die)? Well, that is the question we’re going to tackle today. So keep reading, because I think you’re going to be encouraged.
So often we bemoan how our modern existence with all its busyness and distractions interferes with our ability to focus our attention on the spiritual disciplines so helpful in our ongoing sanctification. But perhaps, for once, we should be thankful. Some of our modern distractions, when looked at through the appropriate lens, actually illustrate connecting in relationship to a God who might otherwise seem removed and unreachable. To highlight this, let me tell you a story.
My husband Eric and I (who have been married for 30 years now) started dating our senior year of high school. But instead of altering our college plans for each other, as some do, we made the “sensible” decision to attend our universities of choice. Eric came here to CSU, and I went off to Taylor University in Indiana twenty-plus hours away. For the first two years of this long-distance relationship, we had to content ourselves with writing “snail mail” letters and scheduling “phone dates.” These “dates” were scheduled to make sure we’d both be in our rooms at the right time because cell phones were very, very rare. Get the picture in your mind–I’m stuck in my dorm room anxiously waiting for the corded phone hanging on the wall to ring so I can spend the next 30 minutes talking to the man I love. (Talk much longer and the bill was going to be totally out of reach for our college student budgets.) Was this arrangement inconvenient and limited? Yes! But we did it because we were desperate for connection. Think of this phase of our relationship as a picture of God’s people when the Temple was the only place to connect directly with God (and that through a priest!).
But then our third year of college, we discovered this magical and newfangled thing called email. Suddenly I could write a letter to Eric whenever it was convenient for me, and he would receive it, not days later but hours (or even minutes) later when he went to the computer lab. Email revolutionized the way we could communicate! As a picture of our relationship with God, get a growing sense of God’s nearness and immediacy.
Nowadays, of course, it’s even easier to connect with the people we love. Yes, we can still write paper letters or make scheduled phone calls if we want to (think Bible studies and Sunday morning services). But we can also send emails and text messages that are received and often read nearly immediately (think an ongoing conversation with the Holy Spirit) or jump on a video chat for a face-to-face interaction, even when miles away (think time set aside to intentionally connect with God).
I hope you’re getting the picture here. Cultivating a relationship with God isn’t as intimidating as it might seem at first. It happens the same way any relationship develops and grows. . . with time spent together. It involves:
- Sharing your heart openly and honestly (the good, the bad, and the ugly)
- Listening to and paying attention to the other person’s heart
- Dreaming together
- Making plans and carrying them out together
- Keeping each other accountable
- Laughing together. . . and crying together
All of these things and more can characterize our relationship with the Lord, and the primary vehicle by which they occur is prayer.
I hope during this coming month you’ll try each of these approaches to deepen your relationship with Jesus. Go ahead and:
- Engage with that paper and ink love letter (the Bible)
- Keep that scheduled “date” (Sunday worship)
- Hop on a virtual chat (personal and intentional time with God)
And finally (and perhaps foremost). . .
- Keep the conversation that flows as a natural extension of your relationship (prayers of worship/love, thanks, intercession, petition, surrender, dependance, and desperation) going as frequently and spontaneously as you do your text threads!
P.S. Don’t forget the ongoing opportunities for corporate prayer that John highlighted in his sermon on prayer. You can find them here. And remember, y’all 😉, we’re in this together!*
Until next time, I’m praying for you.
Blessings,
Aimee
*If you missed John’s sermon on prayer, you can listen to it here.
