Have you ever stopped to wonder what it
means to commune with God? Have you pondered how we can have any
meaningful relation with a being so far beyond us? Beyond even that,
He already knows everything so how can our relationship progress?
Aren't our relationships built on shared experiences and a growing
knowledge of each other that is built over time? This is true of our
earthly relationships but the way in which we interact with our
heavenly Father is, shall we say, a bit different.
“I
am praying to you because I know you will answer, O God. Bend down
and listen as I pray.”
(Psalms
17:6)
First off, yes, God does already know
everything. This of course includes what we are thinking and feeling
and everything we are going to say. The relationship we have with
Him grows not by a greater understanding on His part but of one on
ours. As we seek the Father in His Word and through prayer it draws
us closer to Him. I imagine that God gets much joy in those moments
when we see some new and glorious aspect of Him for the first time,
or when some biblical truth finally makes sense to us. God's
understanding of us is perfect and always has been, but we will never
stop learning more about His infinite character; there will always be
some new aspect to His personality or some fresh insight into His
being to excite us.
“No
one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us,
and His love has been brought to full expression through us. And God
has given us His Spirit as proof that we live in Him and He in us.”
(1
John 4:12-13)
More interesting still is the fact
that unlike our earthly relationships, God is literally within us.
The Holy Spirit dwells in the heart of every Christian, strengthening
and guiding us along our journey. The Bible tells us that He
communicates to the Father on our behalf, communicating better than
we can the things we need from Him. God has placed Himself within us
which means -among other things- that God experiences our lives right
along with us. This is a wondrous thing because it means that God
doesn't understand us simply because He is all knowing, but because
He feels what we feel! The Holy Spirit acts not as a helper that
pokes us along but as a force from within. He accompanies us and
lends us strength through every moment of every day. He is there
when we wake and when we sleep, when we pray and when we read, when
we face challenges and when we accomplish much, He is there when we
rejoice and when we cry. Our relationship with Him is guided by Him
from without and within making His understanding perfect in all ways.
Finally, we come to Jesus; God in flesh
who not only died for our sins but lived for us as well. Often
overlooked is the fact that Christ lived a perfect life on our behalf
just as much as He died on our behalf. He lived through a human life
-day by day- just like we have to, in order that it may be known that
He fully understands. Beyond that His perfect life is accounted to
us, exchanging our sinful lives for His perfect one. In God's plan
He has made sure that our relationship with Him will have no gaps, no
breaches in the wall.
“Therefore,
my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of
Christ, that you may be married to another; to Him who was raised
from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God.”
(Romans
7:4)
It may seem strange to have a real
relationship with someone that we never see or hear or touch, but in
truth, our relationship with God is the most real thing we will ever
experience. He is with us from birth till death, in every moment and
every experience. He's more than an invisible friend or a comforting
thought; more than something we bring out to impress our friends or
sure up our courage during difficult times. He is not a ghost in our
pocket, He is the companion of our soul.
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