Resting in Him

Original Post 7/14/12

Lately I’ve been feeling not as close to God. Life has been so busy and I’ve been doing so much running around that I haven’t really been spending that much quality time with God. Of course I still pray and read my Bible everyday. But there’s a difference between saying a quick 10 minute prayer and a Bible lesson and actually sitting down for an extended period of time, talking to God then being still to hear what God has to tell me. See being a Christian isn’t only about rules and laws, it really is about a relationship with God. Now don’t get me wrong, the commandments are very important and should be obeyed, but God wants a relationship with you. When you’re in a relationship with someone that you haven’t spent time with in a while, you miss them. I was missing God, terribly. 

Today I decided to do something about it. I got up, packed a bag with my daily bread, Bible, iPod, journal, blanket and the book I’m currently reading (Passion and Purity by Elizabeth Elliot) and headed out to Jamaica Pond to spend some time with Jesus. I went to a secluded area that overlooked the scenery and the pond, laid out my blanket and started my day. I had some devotion, read my Word, spent some time journaling and just talked to God as if He was a normal person sitting right beside me. Nothing fancy…just words. Then I just sat there in silence, listened and admired the creation of God as I looked at the pond, all the trees and even a  family of geese that came to visit me. It felt so good to just pour out my heart and tell God what was on my mind and things that were bothering me, I needed that release. The original plan was to stay for 1 hour but it quickly turned into 3 hours. At that point I still didn’t want to leave. I felt His presence with me overwhelmingly in the stillness and silence of my environment, I was so happy and in a state of bliss. I  kept on telling Him that I didn’t want to leave and go back into the world where there was noise, commotion along with people that were rude and mean to me and I didn’t want Him or this feeling to leave me. In the middle of all of this I heard Him say in my spirit “I’m always here” With that I got up, packed everything  and walked back home…glowing and unbelievably happy.

I resolve to do something like this more often, especially because it’s summer and it’s nice outside. I’ll figure out what to do for the colder seasons.

Remember that your walk in Christ is a relationship that you have to be intentional with nurturing. Never be too busy to spend time with Him. It seems silly when we ask Him to bless us with the very same things we get so preoccupied over, that we become too busy to spend time with Him. Life does get busy sometimes and there’s nothing that we can do about it. Be intentional about scheduling 30 minutes out of the day when it’s just going to be you and God, whether it’s singing songs of praise, praying, reading the Word, listening to hear His voice or all of the above. Then for something less frequent (maybe once every other week or once a month) schedule something longer like 1-2 hours where you go to a secluded place and it’s just you and God. You can think about your life, reflect, regroup with Him then go back into the world. If you are truly walking with Christ, then you are walking to an opposite beat that the rest of the world. It’s hard and depressing to see what the world is coming to and dealing with people who give you a hard time whether it’s on the job, family drama or people just coming at you because of your beliefs and/or lifestyle (see my last blog You Are Qualified where I talk about some examples). This time allows you to give it all to God, whatever you might be dealing with or going through, leave it with Him and get the strength and encouragement you need to go back out there and face the world.

By the way… Jamaica Pond is highly recommended as a spot to go.

xo

Tasha