Hi, Just responding in a different topic in a reply to a post, post is below. I can understand why you would be leery of my description of my relationship with Jesus, I have seen His name taken in vain so many times. It's also good for me because when I say to people "things changed when I started having a personal relationship with Jesus" it would be important for me to elaborate on that. In saying that I'd also love to hear how others describe their relationship with Jesus etc. For me, I guess I call it personal, because before I trusted Him, all Christianity was a bunch of rules, to a "principal type figure" God who was just interested in you following His rules, to save you from hell. So for years Christianity was a choresome burden. I never TRULY believed God wanted to give me life to the full, just the dull 'boring' life. How flawed and foolish was I. I put God in a box, all these wishy washy hippy people who talked about Jesus in a charismatic way I thought were a bit loopy. After years of religion, I crashed, because my own righteousness was going no where, I was not making any headway and was slave to all my sins. This is when I surrendered everything to Jesus, including my 20 years of Church. I knew nothing. This is when Jesus came into my life, and I say this because so many things changed dramatically in my life. My heart changed dramatically, I found myself hungry for His word, discovering who He really was through His word, and starting to see how much He really loved me. My joy was increased, my worries less, it was like falling in love, and I was so excited. I was freed from so many struggles, however many more have come since but different kinds, regardless my joy remains ever increasing and intact. I started listening to hours and hours of sermons from anywhere I could find, I also started to discern that not all teachings were spirit led. I loved to pray and spend time pouring my heart out to God and He heard me and answered so many prayers, but moreso just keeps drawing me closer to Him. He is like my best friend and King and creator of the universe all at the same time. I felt like a kid coming towards Him, and really saw Him as my loving Father. He also disciplines me in so many ways, and I have learnt to become obedient and aware of what He is teaching me, through His word, through Him moving also so powerfully throughout my life both in emotional and physical ways. I got out of the box and started meeting all sorts of Christians, this was a great joy. And even the way I evangalised, it wasn't some gunpoint sales pitch, it was just my joy of what Jesus has done in my life. I think God can choose to speak however He pleases be it dreams, visions, audibly or through His people, I think we limit Him sometimes because we are too afraid. Primarily I think He speaks to us through His word, which has the highest authority, because you do get people saying "God spoke to me", and it can be interpreted so many ways. I say I have a personal relationship with Jesus because, He knows me, He loves me, He pursues me, He refines me, He knows my troubles, He knows my needs, He knows my wants, He knows the very number of hairs on my head (actually I think most people would know this). It's amazing. I think sometimes there are two schools of thought, 1. That God is powerful mighty and supreme (which is true) and that we can barely approach Him 2. That God is our "Homeboy", He's a down to earth dude, He knows us, and yeah He's just one of the boys at the end of the day. For me I think its both, Yes, Jesus is my Homeboy, I could walk up and high five Him, but I choose to bow down and worship Him as my king. (And He would probabbly pick me up and high five me anyway!) Does this give a better understanding of what I mean? Thoughts anyone, is this helpful unhelpful, when I'm talking to people? Would love to hear other peoples definition of their relationship too! ays I know of having a relationship with God. Do you have another? Perhaps this would belong in its own thread.
Jean, I cringed when I saw the cold, dead, dusty reply to your comment. Relationship is the essential part of being united with Christ and having His Holy Spirit sealing and marking us. To think that God is only present (and speaking) in the sanctuary or through the Priest is unbiblical. David wrote in Psalm 19 of how God was speaking to him in the wilderness of the desert and that there was not a place he could go to escape His presence. Jesus stated in Matthew 18 that "Where two or three are gathered, there I am in the midst of them". Is He just standing there looking, maybe patting us on the head, or is He speaking to us? May your relationship be an example for others to follow on this forum! Blessings...........Jeff
There are some lovely verses in Psalm 139 (a Friday Compline Psalm) which always speak to me. Lord, you have searched me out and known me, you know my sitting down and my rising up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You trace my journeys and my resting places and are acquainted with all my ways. Where can I go then from your Spirit? where can I flee from your presence? If I climb up to heaven, you are there, if I make the grave my bed, you are there also. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there, your hand will lead me and your right hand hold me fast.