For a couple of years I have been asking the Father to teach me how to be intimate with Him. In the pursuit of it, I read a few books and all the articles I could find that were sane on the internet about it. Yet when I finished, my soul was still fairly dry. I was with God but not in a relationship that I felt was intimate.
I spent hours sometimes trying to get there with partial success.
I tried several techniques some authors suggested with limited success.
I told the Father I wanted to be intimate and He said come on. He even gave me a few clues along the way.
But with all the gyrations and exercises that were done, none led me to the feet of My Father. That is until today. Today I was reading Psalm 63 and the Father spoke to my spirit and said here it is. It is right there in the first verse.
Before I start reading a new Psalm* I research what the background of the Psalm is. Psalm 63 was written on the east side of the Jordan in the wilderness. This land is arid and has very little water. The land was an exact description of how David felt at the moment. (Most of us would say we are dry in spirit much of the time if we are honest.) Here he was with his household, guards and a few loyal court officials fleeing from Jerusalem. Absalom had made himself king by plot and was heading toward Jerusalem take the throne. David decided to leave rather than have an open battle with his son. In this heavy time of defeat in the areas of the physical, spiritual and mental he reached out to God as was his habit. (NOTE: Read that last word again. It is an elementary clue to intimacy.)
Here is a word picture that I want you to get. Picture David getting up before dawn and going off to a place quite some distance from the camp on the rocky plain and into an outcropping of rocks. Here he finds a place behind a pile of stone big enough for him to lay prostrate before the Father. It is here and in this position that he pours out the words of the first verse. Walk with me through this verse and imitate it in your relationship with God.
♥ “O God, You are my God…” The word here for God is the superlative version of it. It means Almighty God and it is recognition of who he is seeking. Before any intimacy can take place there has to be recognition of how awesome and mighty He is. Then we say that He is our only God. A clue: When anyone wants intimacy with God, they abandon themselves to Him because they know how great He is. You are not your own, you were bought with a price, therefore abandon your dreams, goals, desires to the Father for a far better way of life.
♥ “… I shall seek You earnestly…” The word earnestly has a double meaning. It means both earnestly but also early. Early means at or before dawn. So if intimacy is desired then we have to arise early and deliberately seek Him with everything we have. A clue: To find intimacy we cannot hold anything back.
♥ “My soul thirsts for You…” Thirst is one of the basic human needs, it is also a necessity for us spiritually. When a person thirsts for God, they seek greater knowledge of who He is. A clue: Without knowledge of who He is, we can’t be intimate. So get your salvia running and thirst after God. He will not let you be spiritually thirsty for long.
♥ “…my flesh yearns for You…” The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak is a quote we have all heard. It has some truth to it, but in this case we give that weakness to the Lord and say I am all in here. I am waiting here on the ground with my face on it waiting for you to come and be with me. I am being as humble as I possibly can. I am seeking You and want to come to You and enjoy Your presence. A clue: A person this humble will experience God.
♥ “In a dry and weary land where there is no water.” For David at this moment it is both a physical thirst because there was little water where he was but also a spiritual thirst for more of God in his dry and dirty position. We all live in a dry land spiritually. There are few who earnestly seek the Father to be intimate with Him. Many will discourage intimacy because it is too hard or they are lazy. But those who on a regular basis seek him to be intimate with Him will be given the water of the Spirit that once it is ingested will allow you never to be dry spiritually again. A clue: You won’t be dry ever again because once you experience intimacy with God you will hardly ever want to miss a day without being intimate with Him.
A Thought: Intimacy with God is not easy but when sought early and earnestly it is overwhelmingly worth the effort.
A Question: Are you on your way to intimacy?
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