Divine romance

About a year ago, a woman in our church shared about being in love with Jesus. It was not a new concept to me; I knew that Jesus wants to be the lover of our souls. I had just never experienced that kind of intimacy with him before. Following this new curiosity and desire growing in my heart, I began to seek God for direction in cultivating a new and deeper relationship with Jesus. The answer is in James 4:8 "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you." I began to realize that just like any other relationship, I could only go as deep as the time that I was willing to put in through Bible reading, prayer and worship. Let me tell you, it is impossible to build a relationship one day a week! As I read the Bible throughout the week, I began to notice that frequently I would encounter situations that related to the scriptures that I recently read and I would often hear the same verses in church or in books that I was reading. As I began to draw near to God, He began to draw near to me by bringing His words to life! The Bible is not just a manual for how we should live, it is our key to understanding the nature and the very heart of our God. The more I learn about my Jesus, the hungrier I become for truth.

I also began to play worship music more often and worship God at home and in my car, as well as on Sunday mornings. I have found that it is much easier to enter into worship when I don't have to think about whether or not my children are behaving themselves. ( I also began to see my kids entering into worship at home where they aren't inhibited by trying to behave!) Spending time in worship is an act of love to Jesus. It is like spending time with someone whom you are in love with; you can't wait to be with them, you hang on every interaction with them and when you leave their presence you feel like you are walking on air!

Growing in intimacy with the Lord has been a beautiful journey. I have learned to trust him more, I've learned to hear his voice, I have found such joy in his solitary presence! I am finding it easy to make time to be alone with the Lord, in fact I often can't wait to get a moment to pray and read my Bible. I find that every word is a vision of his nature, a key to his heart. This is the greatest romance that I have ever known!

One of the coolest things that God has showed me more recently is that as the image bearers of God, and as temples of the Holy Spirit with Christ dwelling in us, we are the glory of God fully alive! This means that our relationships with others are an intricate part of our relationship with God himself! In Matthew 22:37 Jesus says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself." I can't say enough how God has touched my heart in this area! When I view others the way God sees them, I have deeper intimacy with God; and I'm sure that my family can attest to feeling more love from me when I see them as God does! I know that every relationship in my life will dramatically change when I apply this to all the people that God has placed around me. take a second to consider how the world would be different today if everyone understood and applied just these two commandments to their lives! We can all experience radical changes in our lives and greatly impact others for God's kingdom just by loving God and loving others!
I feel like a young girl in love! Jesus is my first love. It is the most amazing thing that I have ever experienced! I could not have ever imagined the depths of God's love for me without knowing Him this way! Like a young girl, I want to tell everyone about it; I want to invite everyone to fall in love with their Saviour!