Don't Put God in a Box

If you could spend a whole day with someone, who would you choose to spend your time with?

Think about the question before you continue reading.  I'm curious who you would choose.  If you're like me perhaps your first thought was your favorite music artist, a preacher or writer who inspires you, or a friend who lives far away.  It's easy to imagine the hours that would fly by as you sat together discussing life, sharing dreams, and asking questions.  You might continue long after the sun has set, savoring the limited time you have with that special person.  Wouldn't it be simply wonderful?!

What about this:  How many of us would quickly answer the question by saying "Jesus."  How many of us would enjoy spending a whole day with Him?  And horribly, how many of us could actually stand a day like that?

It's like we put God in a box.  We almost esteem Him to be something like a sci-fi character, a remote Being who has superpowers to do anything He likes.  We just have to stay on His good side, ask Him for things, and try to live decent lives.  Then His job is to shower us with blessings.  Right?

Maybe that's a little extreme, but I think a lot of us live our lives with that attitude.  We have a place for God - in Church, in our quiet times, etc - but we don't give Him control over our whole lives.  We don't actually love Him.  Maybe God is like the president.  He rules over us, but He is so distant and powerful that we just can't imagine having a relationship with Him.

The Bible says that we should fear, honor, and revere God.  (see Deuteronomy 6:24, 1 Samuel 2:30, Proverbs 19:23 and Hebrews 12:28)  He created the earth, set the stars in place, knows the number of hairs on your head, and the angels bow before Him.  He can move mountains, part seas, and knows your innermost secrets.  God is mighty beyond imagination.  It is so important not to take Him lightly or to esteem Him as something less than He is.

But we often fall short of what He truly wants.

Growing up as a Christian, I always knew that God loved me.  I knew that He was my Father and wanted me to give my life completely to Him.  Paul writes,

"He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will"- Ephesians 1:4-5

And Romans adds, 

"...you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, 'Abba, Father.'" - Romans 8:15

We are adopted.  That means that God literally chose us to be His children!!  How mind blowing is that?!   That is amazing love.

But I failed to realize that Jesus wanted something more.  Yes, He was my Father, and He cared for me.  Yet more so - He wanted to be my best friend.

Remember the verse I shared last week?  The greatest command in the Bible?

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." - Mark 12:30

In my opinion, that sounds like a lot of love.  If I loved God that much, is there any possible way that He wouldn't be my Best Friend?

As I've thought about it more I realized something.

It's great to have human friends.  God gave us relationships for a reason.  They encourage us, impact us, and bring us closer to Him.  Friends make you laugh when you're feeling discouraged.  They are gifts from God.

But friends fail.  If you wake up afraid in the middle of the night, will your best friend be there to talk to you?  Does she understand your deepest struggles?  Does she know what it's like to be you?  Of course not!

He does.

Christ knows everything - the fear you keep hiding from those around you, the struggles you face every day, and the doubts that plague your mind.  And guess what?  He. Still. Loves. You.

Did you catch that?  God (the great I AM, the Creator of the Universe, the One who is clothed in glory and power!) loves you.  He loves little, tiny, unimportant me. 

I read Song of Solomon last week.  The whole book is a beautiful dialogue between a Shulamite maiden and her beloved who are madly in love.  But as I read it, I imagined something deeper.  Perhaps God wrote the book as a love letter to us.  His bride.  His Church.

He sees us as beautiful, loves us despite our failures, and wants to be with us and hear our voice.  And doesn't He want us to cherish the relationship as well?  Should we be in love with Him as He is with us?

Think of an engaged couple.  Do they ever stop thinking about one another?  Don't they desperately want to be together and talk with one another?  Wouldn't they give up anything in their way just so their relationship could be stronger and more heart-felt?  Would anything be too much of a sacrifice?

But is that us?

This summer we are focusing on love, and the greatest command of all is to love the Lord our God with everything in our being.  I think that means something more than spending an hour every day reading the Bible.  It's more than praying whenever you remember to.  I believe that we are supposed to have a personal, intimate relationship with God.  He is our Best Friend.  We are madly in love with God, and we can't wait until the day we can see Him face to face.  But while we wait, we are remaining pure, set-apart, and holy for Him as His bride.

Is that what your relationship with God looks like?  Are you living your life for Him, looking forward to that day when He will bring us home to be together forever?

This is step #1 in Project Love.  Before we start focusing on relationships with others, let's make sure that we are seeking God and giving Him our whole heart.  Don't put God in a box.  Open the doors of your heart and embrace Him.  Love, thank, cherish your Savior.  Only then will we be able to truly make a difference in the world.

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." - Romans 5:8

What a beautiful romance story.  Christ died for us while we still hated and reviled Him.  He rescued and redeemed us - dirty, broken hearts.  What love.  ♥

Have you ever thought of God as your Best Friend?  Are you willing to give up anything for your relationship with Him?  How are you remaining pure for Christ as His bride?  Comment below!