What does it mean to “experience” God?
- Do we experience God in our emotions?
- Do we experience God in our thoughts?
In the previous post we discussed how to get something from our heads to our hearts. We realized our tendency is to try to make that happen through our strength and ingenuity. We slowly realize … we can’t make truth settle deeper in our hearts on our own.
Sadly, that doesn’t put an end to our striving… But don’t give us, the good news is …
We can’t God can.
God helps us experience Him. (View accompanying video here.)
Process
God brings together concepts we are learning from His word, Biblical teaching, the example of other people, and our life circumstances. As in all of life, some of this happens in our emotions, and some of it happens in our thoughts.
So we see what He is doing, but we don’t know how He brings them together so they go deeper into our hearts.
Pop rocks
This may be a dumb illustration, but often those are what stick with us.
If you grew up in the ’60s and 70’s you may remember “pop rocks.” They were a little package of who knows what that you would put in a glass. When you added water you would see and hear “pop, pop, pop, pop.” This provided hours of laughter and entertainment for us. Most of us didn’t have to understand the chemistry behind the popping. It was simply delightful to enjoy.
Invitation
Our brains are built to figure things out. We want to replicate what we want more of!
God invites us to make a choice. He invites us to change our focus to asking for His help and joyfully embrace mystery as He does.
Think of a child who is trying to accomplish something outside of their capacity. The parent may need to wait till the child has exhausted their fruitless attempts and turns to ask for help. The child’s efforts are often getting in the way of the parent’s help.
God invites us to focus on Him. We do this by exchanging our efforts to get the truth from our head to our heart, to look to Him.
God wants our willingness to receive, not our striving to make something happen.
Are we willing to embrace the mystery of His work in us?
So what do we do?
Am I suggesting that we shut our brains off in order to experience God’s love? No! In the accompanying video, I share some Bible verses that help me position myself to receive. They help me get out of the way and join in His work. I pray that God helps build your faith to receive by highlighting some verses just for you. He wants a relationship with each of us. This is different for all of us.
Your turn
Paul’s prayer for the Ephesian church is helpful to pray for ourselves and one another. If possible, pray this out loud a few times right now. This version is from the Message version.
Ephesians 3:14-19 My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you’ll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ’s love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God. 20-21 God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.
Please share in the comments what God shows you. That encourages us all to keep pressing in and we might try what He shows you. And, if you don’t sense anything right away you can borrow the phrase God showed me,
I can’t but You can.
PS – I woke up this morning with a picture in my mind of a person holding several presents that were all wrapped up and tied with bows. I sensed the Lord say, spread these presents out, open them and enjoy. What could that mean for you?
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