How to know God, not just about Him?

How do you know God, not just about Him?

Paul prayed for the community at Ephesians to have a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of the Lord. That knowledge would bring enlightenment, hope and a weightiness that produced a confidence in their relationship with God while they lived on the earth. Knowing who God is was to the early church essential as they lacked creeds and community. Little out stations of believers striving to resist the world, lacking scriptures or experienced teachers were in need of something that would answer their questions and give direction to their daily life.

Today many of us find we have returned to the place of the early followers of Jesus. No longer in a culture that is filled with God’s truth and righteousness, we seek to live as light in a world that is hostile to God. Some of this hostility is caused by a passion for self, some of it is a reaction to the failures and faults of the Christian community, and some of it is the lust and sin of the world contending against God. In the past we have often answered questions about God with a proclamation that the “Bible tells us so.” But to people who see no value in the Bible, to those who are longing for a personal and relevant God, Bible answers alone fall short.

Paul writes to people in a similar condition. People who needed to have a personal story of a God seeking to redeem the world. Not just another God of power or might, not another God promising blessings or favor, but a God who’s actions and intention can be seen and understood. Humanity has always needed a God that that can be experienced, understood, who enlightens the heart and mind and has power to save our bodies and soul.

For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

Eph 1:15-21 NASB

How do you experience, know God? How can each of us move beyond reading about God in the Bible and come to encounter God with our life? How can we make personal contact with God, interact with God in the ways that are so clearly demonstrated in the Bible? I am going to share one way to do that. It is a way that involves history.

Before I share what it is I want to be honest that this is but one approach. It is an approach that has worked for me, but we are not all the same. One size doesn’t fit all. Just as my wife and I have vastly different ways of interacting with others, with communicating, with finding joy in relationships, all people have unique and personal relationships with God. Yes we have a lot in common. Yes we can learn and find enjoyment in others even when we don’t experience things in the same way they do. Yes God has ways for each of us to connect and experience Him. But the pressure to all connect the same way needs to be reduced, allowing us all to press into the way God has for us.

Spiritual Exercises

In the spiritual exercises that follow I want you to write down your answers. By writing, and not just thinking about it, you are engaging your senses in the process of remembering and recording. Don’t worry about your ability to write. What I desire to happen is that by writing answers to the questions you thoughtfully record experiences you have had with God. I want you to create a written account of your life with God so that you can see it, read it, touch it, and reflect on it.

Feel free to communicate by writing in any style you find expression in. You can write random thoughts or tell the story as though you were an observer watching it happen. You can write your answers in songs or pomes. You can make an outline or mark bold words with comments added later.

One final note before you start writing. Include as much detail as possible. Who was with you and what did they say? What time of day was it, what was the weather like? Do you recall how you felt, what were your emotions? What songs, music, conversations, ideas or thoughts were a part of the events? The goal is to take the time and deeply inquire and write your story with God.

Here are the questions that lead to your story. Read through the questions to see what you connect with. Don’t worry if you do not have an answer for some questions. You may discover that you have ten stories for one question. That is often the case as God tends to speak to us in familiar ways, ways we come to know and trust. May the Lord help you as you write down you encounters with Him.

How did your first come to know about God? How did you meet God?

Looking back over your life, when did you feel the most connected to God? What was special about this situation?

Tell me how God helped you through a past struggle. What did God do to direct your steps? Who was involved? Did any unique things happen?

Have you ever been out in nature and encountered God? How did it happen? What were you doing or looking at? Why did this impacted you so?

Have you ever looked up at the stars at night and felt the Lord speak to you? What did He say? What emotions did you have when this happened?

What was the last thing that you feel God has said to you? How has that affected your life? What directions do you feel you should take or not take?

Over the last six months or year, has God surprised you in any way? Have you experienced something you desired but did not ask God for? Have you felt loved by God through some event or situation?

Is there a song that you feel God has/is speaking to you through? What is happening behind that song that makes this connection personal or helpful? What emotions do your feel are involved in this event?

Have you ever been taking with a friend but felt that God was using your friend to tell you something? What was the message and who did it help? Has there been any change to your life related to this message?

Do you ever have dreams that you feel are from God? Can you write out the dream? What message does this dream convey? Do any of the dreams seem to have the same message? What is it?

When you ask God for something, how does God tell you “no”? How does God tell you “yes”? What do you experience when God is telling you to “wait”?

Have you ever felt like God was using you to speak to someone else? What happened? What did you feel? How did it turn out?

Do you feel like God has ever used a video or piece of art work to tell you something? What was the video or art? What was going on in your life at the time? How did you feel about the message from God?

Have you ever had people pray for you and you felt God more than you felt the people around you? Did you emotions erupt? Did you feel hope or courage, joy or sorrow? What was the result of that time of prayer?

One of my stories

I was going through a season in life when I questioned what value I was to God and to others. I know something was conflicting in my spirit. I wanted to be wanted and I wanted to be happy doing whatever God had for me to do. So in many ways I was double minded, I wanted both to be content and important at the same time. By “important” I mean I wanted to see myself as important, I wanted a greater amount of self-love and not just the love of others.

I was driving about forty miles per hour down a four lane highway in Peoria IL. It was fall and some of the leaves were just dropping off the trees. As a large brown single leaf tumbled across the road in front of me it was if everything went into slow motion. In real time I am sure that this leaf blew across the road in less than two seconds. But God spoke so much to me in those moments that it would fill pages in my journal.

I remember the immediate joy and peace I had in my heart. Feeling that God has spoken to me settled my issues of unrest. The longing for value that I was seeking was satisfied. I became peaceful. So what did God say?

I felt that God had revealed to my heart that He was the tree of life. All things are from Him. He is life and gives life to all. I am like a leaf. I have a time to live and a time to die. My life, my doing, my worth is not because I am a great leaf; I am only what He has grown me into being.

I felt the Lord correct me on my understanding of life and time. I failed to see that I am but one season in a long history of His bringing life to the earth. I overvalued my season and failed to honor those who had gone before and those who would come after me. I lusted for more influence and significance and battled with the humble reality that my life was in Him. Apart from Him I can do nothing. And the day of my parting was soon coming. For man is a vapor and quickly passes.

It seemed strange to me that while the Lord spoke to me about my insignificance I felt more significant than ever before. While the Lord told me “all that I was not”, “all that I was” seemed to be filled with life, light and hope. Without pondering what was happening I became excited, alive, and thrilled at being one leaf among the thousands of leaves who live only for a season in Christ Jesus. I felt all the needs to be great fall off and the only need I had was to be alive in Christ, for Christ. Even the thought of passing away and entering into eternal life was exciting as I felt I could look back and feel honor in doing my part.

Recalling this story I am amazed at how “fast” the Lord spoke. One moment I was driving an old beat up pickup down a four lane highway wondering “what am I doing with my life?” Two seconds and one leaf later I am filled with joy and hope. I feel fulfilled, satisfied because I have communicated with God. A rebuke, a revelation and an insight into life had given me new direction. My emotions and mindsets had changed as I understood my life as an extension of His life. And maybe for the first time I saw the lives of others, of those I so often competed with for significance, as extensions of His life too. All that any of us has, was been given to us by the Lord.

The Goal of the Exercise

When I finished writing this little story of God intervention in my life I felt His love all over again. My faith increased as I call to remembrance this event. I remember this life lesson and have the opportunity to revalue God who teaches me, guides me, and leads me through life for His names sake. What I hope to share in not so much my story, but how you have your story. You encounter God too. You experience Him. You have an answer just like the people in the book of Acts had an answer. Tell them the story of Jesus in your life.

Peoria Prayer Center on Facebook

Twitter (Rodney)

Books on the Shelf