“And I heard a thunderous voice from the throne, saying: ‘Look! God’s tabernacle is with human beings. And from now on he will tabernacle with them as their God. Now God himself will have his home with them—‘God-in-them’ will be their God!’” -Revelation 21:3 TPT
When I was a child, my three sisters and I relished every opportunity to create imaginary worlds of beauty and delight with tree branches, leaves, flowers, assorted shrubbery, and, every once in a while, prized items from the nearby junkyard. Unlike most young girls our age, my sisters and I did not replicate imaginary worlds from Disney storybooks but the Bible. (Our mother was a devout Godly woman who began reading Bible stories to us at a very young age.)
"One of the worlds" we especially loved to create was Heaven. Of course, angels and streets of gold existed in this realm, but more importantly, we met Jesus there. We particularly enjoyed creating this world after a heavy snowfall. The breathtaking beauty of the white forest, accompanied by the tree's bowing position, made the world seem surreal. It appeared as if nature itself had accommodated for the entry of our Heavenly King.
The most incredible aspect of our nature experience was the enormous joy we felt inside as we generated conversations between God and us. We would bow before our King, sing hymns of praise and adoration, and lay in the snow as we let our imaginations run wild with Heavenly fantasies. Time seemed to stand still during these encounters until we began to feel the tingling of our cold fingers and toes.
As I grew up, my childlike wonder slowly melted away as a sense of rationalism superseded the mysteries of God. My primary narrative became the belief that one could only find God through faith.
Eventually, I forgot the sensation and delight of those times in the woods and, deep down, I no longer believed He could personally draw close to me. The majority of my religious experiences seemed to focus on the rules and regulations of being a Christian and the spiritual disciplines required to please God. I imagined God as a distant God who was only concerned with my impeccable compliance to His rules, not with my intimate connection to Him.
Although I dutifully set aside time for God, I regarded my devotional times as a checklist requirement for Christianity, not as an opportunity to meet personally with my creator and Heavenly Father. More times than not, the disciplines I so adamantly aimed to follow generated guilt in me because I was constantly falling short. For example, I would seek to enforce my goal of waking up early to read the Bible, but I would only find myself sleeping each morning. When I did wake up half an hour later with drool on my Bible and highlighter pen all over the page, I'd become instantly frustrated and would ruthlessly criticize myself over my "lack of commitment."
I viewed going to church, reading my Bible, and praying as an assurance of meeting God in Heaven when I died, instead of an invitation to meet God during my lifetime here on earth.
Before I go any further, I want to address the uncomfortable feeling you may have experienced when reading this blog's title. I intentionally used the words "intimacy" and "God" in the exact phrase because I don't want improper ideas and shallow perceptions to rob us of a close relationship with God. Many of us have a narrow definition of intimacy. Still, today I challenge us to go beyond these words' surface to expose valuable meanings that apply to our relationship with God.
Most of us associate the term "intimacy" with a relationship between a husband and wife. But this is unquestionably not the only relationship where we can experience intimacy. Webster's Online Dictionary defines intimacy as "the state of being intimate; close familiarity or association; nearness in friendship." Webster further defines intimate as:
1. innermost; inward; internal; deep-seated; hearty
2. near; close; direct; thorough; complete
When we experience intimacy with God, it comes from our innermost being, which is the Spirit of God inside of us. In this kind of relationship, our desired nearness comes from acknowledging our utter insufficiency without Him. We long for the closeness of bosom friendship, not the detachment of a casual acquaintance.
Many examples in scripture confirm that this type of relationship with God is possible. One of my favorites is Moses. Moses lived before Jesus' death, resurrection, and the receiving of the indwelling of God through the Holy Spirit, yet he profoundly and intimately connected with God. Exodus 33:11 tells us, "Inside the Tent of Meeting, the LORD would speak to Moses face-to-face, as one speaks to a friend."
"Inside the Tent of Meeting, the LORD would speak to Moses face-to-face, as one speaks to a friend." -Exodus 33:11
This Tent of Meeting was a shelter where people would intentionally go to meet the Lord and inquire of Him. Later, when their traveling days were over, God commanded the Israelites to build Him a more permanent temple. Still, the purpose of this building remained the same. It was explicitly designed to cultivate communion with God.
God made a beautiful promise to the Israelites regarding this temple. He said, "Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place. For now, I have chosen and consecrated this house that my name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there for all time." II Chronicles 7:15-16
"He said, 'Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place. For now, I have chosen and consecrated this house that my name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there for all time.'" -II Chronicles 7:15-16
Take a moment, and imagine what it would have been like when the Israelites heard the promise, "my eyes and heart will always be there." What a promise! How many of us can say this about a human? No matter how faithful and devoted even our best friends or family members are, they cannot have that type of devotion toward us.
This promise brings me to the best news I have to share today. Because of God's great love and superb design for humanity, you can also hold on to the same promise God gave the Israelites. God always turns his heart and His eyes toward you. If you ever doubted God's desire to be intimate with you, question no longer. From the innermost part of His heart, He longs for face-to-face friendship with you.
When I read about the Israelites' "meeting places," I am reminded of the beautiful sanctuaries I created in the woods to meet Jesus. I cannot say the Lord himself instructed me to do this, as was the case with the Israelites; however, I can declare when I traveled and entered those wooded worlds, I expected to find God and meet with Him just like Moses and the priests did. As a child, I wholeheartedly believed I would find God and draw close to Him, and I am confident that is what happened to me in those woods. By intentionally creating a place in my environment to meet the Lord, I naturally made a place in my heart to discover and experience Him.
Revelation 21:3 says, "And I heard a thunderous voice from the throne, saying: 'Look! God's tabernacle is with human beings. And from now on he will tabernacle with them as their God. Now God himself will have his home with them—‘God-in-them' will be their God!'"
I challenge you to begin today to build intentional places in your heart and your environment to foster a closer relationship with the Lord. I can assure you that you will not be disappointed.
Let's Pray.
Lord,
Thank you for sending your Holy Spirit to make the indwelling of God possible in my life. Deepen my understanding of what "God-in-me" means. Today I commit to intentionally build more places in my mind, heart, and environment to meet you.
Amen
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