Re (1): Degrees of Knowledge

I have read everything I could find on the subject of having as up close and personal a relationship with God as is humanly possible in this life, and I still find Brother Lawrence's book the best, perhaps because it is the simplest, the least fussy and complicated. There are numerous books "out there" which detail these actual ongoing conversations with God, but I find them distracting, as they leave one with either a sense of high expectation or disillusionment. Indeed, a sense of high expectation, expecting our own experience to match or exceed that of another, can hinder an honest relationship with God a great deal. A personal relationship with God is just that: personal. And just as we all have friendships that vary in degree of richness and depth, so too, I believe, does God. There are the curious who want to know His sensational displays of supernatural power. There are those who seek Him out of desperation, looking for help. There are those who seek to exploit His name on the road to personal promotion, worldly success. And there are those who seek Him primarily to know Him in spirit and in truth, to know Him as He is, the truth of His being.

The wonderful thing about the true and living God who is, is that He will take us all wherever He finds us. He is not fussy or complicated. He doesn't care what background we come from, or for that matter, why we have come. Those who seek will surely find; to those who knock, He will open. Developing a personal relationship with Him is the same as developing a personal relationship with anyone else. For any relationship to grow in richness and depth depends on many factors, but time, motive, and honest, open communication remain key ingredients. The truth is that God is real; He is He who is. No amount of doctrine, of hype, of worldly philosophies, will change the absolute truth of His being. The good news of the Gospel is that God lives, and that because He is very much alive He is very much able - as well as most willing and anxious - to engage us in not only personal conversation - yes, even to satisfy need and curiosity - but to draw us into the richest, deepest, most rewarding, and eternally profound and enduring friendship we could ever know.

• Re(2): Degrees of Knowledge - By Eric March 10, 2005 at 10:06:11 AM
  • Re(3): Degrees of Knowledge - By Linda March 10, 2005 at 11:35:07 AM
    • Re(4): Degrees of Knowledge - By karen March 11, 2005 at 07:57:11 AM
      • Re(5): Degrees of Knowledge - By Bill March 11, 2005 at 11:18:00 AM
        • Re(6): Degrees of Knowledge - By Eric March 11, 2005 at 12:58:19 PM
          • Re(7): Degrees of Knowledge - By karen March 12, 2005 at 08:09:34 PM