Supernatural Relationship

Relationships can be tricky.  Commitment gets tangled with misunderstanding, trust with poor communication and partnership with selfishness.  Some seem to enter into them fairly well, while others not so much.

If human relationships are so precarious, how can one ever hope to have a relationship in a supernatural realm with a Father God who can be known but not seen, followed but not proven, worshiped but not touched?  There certainly are no pat answers for a genuine encounter with God.  A divine relationship does not concede to a formula.

That being said let me offer a few dynamics worth considering: 

God graciously initiates this relationship.  We love Him because He first loved us.  It is His gracious dealings with us that set us on the path of pursuit.  It is His continued gracious dealings that stir our hearts to know him more.  

God is speaking to us….through the Scriptures.  He affirms and counsels, directs and encourages, corrects and explains, exposes and shares.  We read and listen.  We come to the Bible convinced that God is presently interacting with His universe...with us.   

Willfully harming the relationship creates a strain and sets up barriers.  Sin has a way of weaseling its way into our lives to the detriment of an intimate friendship.  If we call sin what it is (confession) we will discover His forgiving and restorative nature.   

It is impossible to overemphasize  the Holy Spirit’s role in drawing us into this relationship.  We are not naturally robust pursuers and intimate knowers of God.  The Spirit creates space for this growth.  We open ourselves up to His control in nurturing this relationship. 

Giving attention to God through worship and prayer opens the door for personal interaction.  In prayer we have conversation with God.  “Prayer means keeping company with God who is already present.” 

In worship we have opportunity to express strong and heartfelt affection.  “True worship comes from people who are deeply emotional and who love deep and sound doctrine. Strong affections for God rooted in truth are the bone and marrow of biblical worship.” 

(Quotes by Phillip Yancey and John Piper)