Day 01 - Cultivating Intimacy With God
But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed
God desires relationship with us. Have you ever just sat back and thought about how profound that truth is? The God of the universe desires communion with us enough to send Jesus to die to pay for the sins that separated us from Him.
But there are many levels of relationship. A neighbour you see once a week on bin day who you can hardly remember their name, a co-worker you only talk to at work, a brother, a best friend, a spouse. They are all relational interactions, but largely what separates them is the level of intimacy shared with each person. The neighbour may not know what makes you laugh or moves you to tears. But your best friend, with a relationship developed over time, through regular conversation and by sharing parts of your life with each other, may know exactly those details of your life.
God does not want the type of relationship that is acknowledged once a week when you happen to take your bins out at the same time. He desires a depth of intimacy that is developed over time, through regular conversation and sharing all your life with him.
This very form of intimacy was demonstrated and practiced by Jesus himself. Often, we see Jesus withdraw to a solitary place just to be with this father. In Mark 1:35 and Luke 5:16, he does so to pray; in Luke 6:12 he even prays all night before he makes the big decision of who his apostles will be. This intentional pursuit of intimacy allowed Jesus to be completely in agreement with the Father’s will, to the point where he only did what he saw His Father do, as we read in John 5:19.
From a place of intimacy, we get a glimpse of God’s heart. That glimpse of God’s heart shapes our convictions; our desires become His desires. Those convictions then show us what we should do. The purpose for our lives comes from the depth of intimacy we share with our heavenly Father.
Intimacy does not develop by accident; it requires intentional effort through the ups and downs of life. A continual pursuit of an ever-deeper intimacy with God.
Challenge: Write it Down
At the beginning of this 21 days of Prayer and Fasting, take the time to intentionally write down practical ways you can foster a pure childlike intimacy with our heavenly Father. Then take it one step further, open your calendars and schedule these moments in over the next 21 days.