Experiencing God

Chapter Seven--God Pursues a love Relationship With You

Question 1. How did you feel as you walked and talked with God?

Like in man’s world, a marriage cannot be one-sided. For it to be successful, both spouses must love one another. This is also true with God. His love for us is continuous and unconditional. However, for us to really experience him, we must love him in return.

John 14:15: “If you love me, you will obey what I command” (NIV).

John 14:21: “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him” (NIV).

John 14:31: “But the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me” (NIV).

As mentioned from the previous discussions, I am focusing on a love relationship with God. One part of the problems I have around the house are the normal distractions. They include the computer, telephone and television-to name a few. For me to focus on God, I need a little solitude.

Our attic-which is finished-was a home of clutter throughout the years. When I first got married, I could not even move around it-there were boxes stacked from floor to ceiling. This house had originally belonged to his mother and she saved everything. After years of going through boxes we were able to make the attic more organized-keeping the memorable items, donating clothes to the Salvation Army and throwing out anything that was broken.

The attic is what I call a T-shaped one. It consists of two wings. One wing-the main attic-we use to store toys and books my daughters outgrew. We have hopes they eventually have children of their own.

Part of the second wing is used at an exercise room. It has a treadmill, rowing machine and other exercise equipment. The remained of that wing is used for as storage for Christmas decorations and items we could not bear to throw away.

I decided to use part of the main attic as a prayer room. It is peaceful up there. With some solitude, I can focus on God without any distractions.

Question 2. What aspects of your love relationship with God become clear to you?

The first thing I learn is that obedience and love go hand-in-hand. If I do not obey God, then it means that I do not love him. This does not mean that I just obey the Ten Commandments because I have to. It must also be in my heart. A great example is if somebody does me an injustice. I might tell that person that I forgive him. However, in my heart I still might hold a grudge towards him. By doing this, I cannot live for God or jesus like I should. When I have bad thoughts about a person, I am lying when I tell God, “I love you with all my heart.”

Deuteronomy 6:4-5: “hear, O Israel: ‘The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength” (NIV).

Question 3: If this was a difficult or an emotionally uneasy time, why do you think it was?

Who doesn’t have emotionally and uneasy times? With me, I can stress about a situation one day. Then the next day, I would be fine. As I mentioned before, my car was in the shop needing a new fuel pump. It will not be ready until next week because it needs other things done with it. I stressed about the cost for parts and labor. I wondered how I was going to pay for this as well as afford a rental to get back and forth to work. After praying and talking to God about this, I decided to put it in God’s hands. Whenever I was in a situation like this before, God always provided me with a way to get the money.

It all turned out well in the end with the car. The costs for the parts and labor were not as high as I originally expected them to be.

Question 4. What happened that was especially meaningful or joyful?

God gave me life. He is my life. I do not need a good life. With God I have everything I need. He started this love relationship with me. I love him in return by doing the following:

Choosing the life he wants for me

Listening to him when he speaks

Holding fast to him

Believing his son is Jesus who died for me

Obeying his commands

Obeying his teaching

Laying down my life for him

When I love God, he will bless me. My children and my husband will be blessed because of my faith. I have eternal life. I will conquer every problem I face. I will not allow anything to separate me from God. I love God with all my being. Even when I am at my lowest and the situation looks bad, God’s love is more than enough to give me hope and life.

Question 5. Would this be the kind of experience you might want to repeat frequently?

My relationship with God is the most important thing of my life. Without God, my life would be chaotic without any hope.

Matthew 6:24: “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both god and Money” (NIV).

I now have a deeper understand of this verse. Most of the things I stress about are money problems. It is my fault that I got into the money situation in the first place. I cannot blame God. I cannot expect God to hand me over the money that I need to pay off our bills. While it would be great to be debt free, it will not happen overnight. God will show me wisdom and teach me the ways to be wiser with my money. Since God loves me, he will give me what I need. However, he has to be the highest priority in my life.

Ezekiel 36:26: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” (NIV).

I had a heart of stone. God gave me a new heart. I now have a desire to know Jesus Christ and be like him. I am allowing my present to be molded and shaped into a body for Christ.

I will meet God in the morning when I wake up. I will enjoy spending time with him. Doing this will deepen and enrich the relationship we share with each other. By praying and studying the Bible, I will have the opportunity to get to know the one who loves me.

The more I love God, the easier it will be to walk with him and hear him. I desire to share a fellowship with him. By doing these, I will know a lot about God, his way and his purposes,

References:

The Holy Bible. New International Version