Heb 4:16, James 4:8a
by Kemi O.
It is obvious that some people are closer to the Lord than others and its been like that since biblical times e.g Abraham, David, Moses etc. You begin to wonder why does these ones seem to have a closer relationship with the Lord? or why is that they are hearing from God clearly, what is it that they are doing that I am not?
Is it that God has favorites? Is He a respecter of persons? The answer is No, because the scripture tells us that He is not a respecter of persons Rom 2:11 and we, not God determine our own level of intimacy with Him. God is not going to force himself on us but He has freely invited us into His presence to fearlessly and boldly come unto the throne of grace that we may receive mercy for our failures and find grace to help in good times for every need. Heb 4:16 amplified. This verse in scripture indicates that each one of us can be as close to God's throne of grace as we choose to be.
In order to have a closer relationship with the Lord, we have to be willing to spend quality time with Him. It also depends on how much time you are ready to commit to pursuing a relationship with Him. God does not ask for all our time, just a portion of it in which He can spend time guiding and directing us, revealing important things to us, enjoying our praises and worship etc. I have found out from personal experience that the best time of the day to give to the Lord is early in the morning before my day begins.
I receive strength, guidance, refreshment from above that will carry me through the day and it always feels good. The day I forget or postpone my quiet time with the Lord, I do not feel good at all, things just seem to be out of balance and I have to ask God for mercy by the end of the day.
As christian women, especially we, mothers who are constantly busy with not just our careers but household chores, children's activities etc, our goal should be to have proper balance in order to live healty and fulfilling lives. I know it appears almost impossible to juggle both our time with the Lord, family and career, church activities etc, but the Lord has designed us ( body, spirit & soul) to accomodate all however, we need to ask Him for the strength to live balanced lives.
I believe the whole issue of intimacy with God is a matter of how we chose to spend our time. Look at the story of Mary and Martha, Luke 10:40-42. Martha chose to spend her time by serving, being burdened with the cooking, cleaning etc, while her sister, Mary chose to spend her time with Jesus learning more about the kingdom of God. It is not that Martha's service to the Lord was not acceptable to Him, but at that point in time, it was not a priority to the Lord for He had preferred her to do the same as Mary.
A lot of times, we argue that there is not just enough time in the day and so therefore it's not easy to commit to spending quality time with the Lord but yet, we take time to do other things that are important to us. Women, we need to fight distractions that are around us on a daily basis to protect our time with the Lord. No matter how busy we get, we should always remember how important our God is, He has to take top priority in our lives for all that we have is from Him and all that we are is because of Him. The enemy knows that when we have an intimate relationship with our God, it makes us stronger believers and alert in the spirit and able to discern between good and evil, which makes us dangerous to the kingdom of darkness. As a result, satan tries to do everything in his power to distract us from spending quality time with the Lord.
In order to experience intimacy with God, we must be ready to give up time for Him, quality time. A commitment to spend time with Him is as serious as any other commitment we could ever make in our lives. The Lord reveals in Psalm 27:8 that He is a vital necessity in our lives. If we say we love the Lord with all our heart, then we should be eager to be in His presence as often as possible. Matt 22:37
The quality of our lives as women is greatly affected by the time we spend with God. As a result of spending time in His presence, we become effective in our prayer lives and more knowledgeable of who He is, fruitful and productive in our homes, careers, ministries, etc. Sisters, it is time to enjoy an intimate, loving relationship with our God. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Jam 4:8a
Let us come boldly into His presence for He is ready to spend as much time with us as we allow Him to and the Lord will help us by His Holy Spirit to achieve this in Jesus name.
Shalom!
by Kemi O.
It is obvious that some people are closer to the Lord than others and its been like that since biblical times e.g Abraham, David, Moses etc. You begin to wonder why does these ones seem to have a closer relationship with the Lord? or why is that they are hearing from God clearly, what is it that they are doing that I am not?
Is it that God has favorites? Is He a respecter of persons? The answer is No, because the scripture tells us that He is not a respecter of persons Rom 2:11 and we, not God determine our own level of intimacy with Him. God is not going to force himself on us but He has freely invited us into His presence to fearlessly and boldly come unto the throne of grace that we may receive mercy for our failures and find grace to help in good times for every need. Heb 4:16 amplified. This verse in scripture indicates that each one of us can be as close to God's throne of grace as we choose to be.
In order to have a closer relationship with the Lord, we have to be willing to spend quality time with Him. It also depends on how much time you are ready to commit to pursuing a relationship with Him. God does not ask for all our time, just a portion of it in which He can spend time guiding and directing us, revealing important things to us, enjoying our praises and worship etc. I have found out from personal experience that the best time of the day to give to the Lord is early in the morning before my day begins.
I receive strength, guidance, refreshment from above that will carry me through the day and it always feels good. The day I forget or postpone my quiet time with the Lord, I do not feel good at all, things just seem to be out of balance and I have to ask God for mercy by the end of the day.
As christian women, especially we, mothers who are constantly busy with not just our careers but household chores, children's activities etc, our goal should be to have proper balance in order to live healty and fulfilling lives. I know it appears almost impossible to juggle both our time with the Lord, family and career, church activities etc, but the Lord has designed us ( body, spirit & soul) to accomodate all however, we need to ask Him for the strength to live balanced lives.
I believe the whole issue of intimacy with God is a matter of how we chose to spend our time. Look at the story of Mary and Martha, Luke 10:40-42. Martha chose to spend her time by serving, being burdened with the cooking, cleaning etc, while her sister, Mary chose to spend her time with Jesus learning more about the kingdom of God. It is not that Martha's service to the Lord was not acceptable to Him, but at that point in time, it was not a priority to the Lord for He had preferred her to do the same as Mary.
A lot of times, we argue that there is not just enough time in the day and so therefore it's not easy to commit to spending quality time with the Lord but yet, we take time to do other things that are important to us. Women, we need to fight distractions that are around us on a daily basis to protect our time with the Lord. No matter how busy we get, we should always remember how important our God is, He has to take top priority in our lives for all that we have is from Him and all that we are is because of Him. The enemy knows that when we have an intimate relationship with our God, it makes us stronger believers and alert in the spirit and able to discern between good and evil, which makes us dangerous to the kingdom of darkness. As a result, satan tries to do everything in his power to distract us from spending quality time with the Lord.
In order to experience intimacy with God, we must be ready to give up time for Him, quality time. A commitment to spend time with Him is as serious as any other commitment we could ever make in our lives. The Lord reveals in Psalm 27:8 that He is a vital necessity in our lives. If we say we love the Lord with all our heart, then we should be eager to be in His presence as often as possible. Matt 22:37
The quality of our lives as women is greatly affected by the time we spend with God. As a result of spending time in His presence, we become effective in our prayer lives and more knowledgeable of who He is, fruitful and productive in our homes, careers, ministries, etc. Sisters, it is time to enjoy an intimate, loving relationship with our God. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Jam 4:8a
Let us come boldly into His presence for He is ready to spend as much time with us as we allow Him to and the Lord will help us by His Holy Spirit to achieve this in Jesus name.
Shalom!
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