Eternal Life and Finding Teddy

I want to ask a simple question today.  Do you believe the Word of God?  Does it impact your life to the point where you live by it and allow it to change you? I am sure you can relate that we come in contact with people - negative, depressed, hurting people - and when you remind them of some of the great promises in God’s Word for them and their situation, they would say.. "Yes I know the Word says that, but…"  All this means is they know it is written in the Word somewhere, but they don’t have confidence in the truth of it or believe it enough to let it impact and change their situations - or even give them hope.

Prov 30:5 AMPC - Every word of God is tried and purified; He is a shield to those who trust and take refuge in Him.

One of the greatest joys of my life right now is that I can have a relationship with Abba Father, with Jesus and with the Holy Spirit.  Do you know that the Bible calls this eternal life?  Yes, you read right.  Eternal life doesn’t only start the day you check out of your earth suit.  The Bible says eternal life is to know Him:

John 17:3 NKJV - And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

So, to know God and to know Jesus is eternal life.  But what does it look like to know God?  It means that you trust Him enough to open up all the doors to all the rooms of your heart and life.  We tend to open up some areas but want to keep control of others.  Little secret - He already knows everything that is going on in all the rooms of your heart and life.  Problem is that the areas you are keeping from Him, He cannot fix - He cannot make better.  Not that He doesn't want to, but He will not open any door by force. He wants you to trust and love Him enough to run to Him and be willing to be super vulnerable and like a little child with dirt on your clothes and a dead mouse in your pocket say "I scraped my knee, or I lost my favorite teddy bear".  He will then grab you by the hand and say “Where did you last see it?  Let's go find it for you”.  Don’t know Him like that?  You can today!  How?

Jer 29:11-14 NLT - 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. 14 I will be found by you,” says the Lord. 

Christ lives in us and so it is not a matter of going to find Him somewhere. No, He says to draw near to Him, to shift your focus and put your attention on Him in your heart. He is always there wanting you to draw near and look to Him.

Sometimes negative life experiences with relationships make us weary and sceptical to the point where we don’t fully trust that the Lord will be there when we come looking for Him.  I have found myself in such situations where people I have trusted just upped and went without warning. Without really knowing it, I translated those feelings onto my relationship with the Lord.  But I am learning that He is faithful and true to His Word and when I make the time to look to Him without distractions, seeking Him as the most important person, He always makes His presence known. In James 4:8 the Bible says, “Draw near to me and I will draw near to you”.  This is a promise.

I started by asking if you believe the Word. Believing the Word makes more sense if you realize that it is not a dusty, ancient book, but a Person - Jesus is the Word made flesh.  The Bible is written by men, inspired by the HS but in its essence and core it is love letters that Jesus, the Bridegroom wrote to His Bride - to you!  The Word is God breathed and is spirit and life that is why it can change any situation.

John 1:14 NKJV - And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 6:63 AMPC - It is the Spirit Who gives life [He is the Life-giver]; the flesh conveys no benefit whatever [there is no profit in it]. The words (truths) that I have been speaking to you are spirit and life.

Taking the time to read the Word is a sure way to get to know God. In Ps 138 it says that He exalted His Word even above His name.  Why? Because, contrary to popular belief, God is not flaky where you never know what He is going to do from one minute to the next.  No, His Word is His contract with us stating what He has already done, what He will still do, but also what He can’t do.  To know what is written in this contract, you need to open and read it daily - the Word sitting unopened on your coffee table will not benefit you.

Ps 138:2 AMPC - I will worship toward Your holy temple and praise Your name for Your loving-kindness and for Your truth and faithfulness; for You have exalted above all else Your name and Your word and You have magnified Your word above all Your name!

I once heard someone say that you have as much of God in your life as you want.  The first time I heard the phrase it irritated me ever so slightly.  But the more I allowed the Lord to show me this, the more I saw that even though I might not have hours to spend reading the Word daily, when I do, I should give it my full attention and read it by faith in expectation that not only will I get great revelation as I choose to believe what I read, but His presence will show up. I also need to be mindful that the Holy Spirit is there to give understanding and to reveal Jesus to me.  I have come to know that the more I choose these things, the more I sense His presence with me as I read which makes it so memorable that I don't want to stop.

2 Pet 3:18 NKJV - ..but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

God wants you to have relationship with Him, He wants you to know Him.  The great thing is that His grace positions you for relationship and knowing God.  What does that mean?  It means that you don’t need to earn it through performance - be the best and read the most and pray the longest.  No, all He asks is that you will make the time and come of your own free will and choice. It is as easy as that.

Ps 73:28 AMPC - But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord God and made Him my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works.

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