Theme of the Week: Rebuilding Intimacy
Bible Verse: “Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Matthew 6:8 ESV
Scripture Reading: Matthew 6:5-15
In Matthew 6, just as Jesus was about to teach His disciples how to pray, He said, “Your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. Therefore, when you pray, say…”
What a peculiar statement. If the Father knows everything already, then why pray? Make special note of this: God is not knowledge-deprived.
We do not pray to make God aware of our issues. He knew about them before we did.
The only conclusion we can draw from this scripture is that God must be more interested in the connection than the information. What if he is not looking to understand the situation as much as He is looking to know YOU?
Therein lies the risk of intimacy. We cannot simply state facts or describe activities, we must be able to articulate our personal experience on an inner level (if you’re married and your wife has asked you how you spent the day…you’ll know what I mean). I’m still learning this one myself.
A majority of men (including myself) avoid intimacy for a few reasons:
- Fear of looking weak
- Fear of rejection
- Fear of emotions/feelings/inner life
- Fear of consequences
- Fear of facing reality
Did you catch the commonality? The greatest obstacle to intimacy with God is fear.
The question then becomes – what is intimacy with God worth to you? Would you rather stay in a lukewarm relationship and avoid the risk or face your fear and open up?
The reality is that you and I answer this question every day with our actions. Letting God into the deep, personal parts of your life may not be comfortable, but no matter how scary it is, I guarantee you it is worth the risk.
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