Pursuing God is more than just an intellectual quest. I tried responding intellectually to Him for many years, but that pursuit never changed me. A pursuit of God that is just intellectual isn’t a relationship because there is no interaction or communication. It is in interaction with God that we are changed. When I grasped this truth, it altered the way I responded to Him. I found a deep longing to know the abundant life that was waiting for me.
Yes! Knowing what the Word says is extremely important, but we should never limit God. He has more for us than intellectual knowledge. God created us to “know” Him intimately. To be intimate, there must be interaction. Since God is the Word, He communicates with us through it. We have a relationship with the Word.
Knowing God mirrors the physical intimacy of marriage— the becoming of one as between a husband and wife. This is real intimacy. Such a relationship holds nothing back. It is bold and audacious. It has no fear of condemnation or shame. It has the freedom of honesty because it trusts. This kind of relationship is deeply personal, vulnerable, and wide open. Most of all, it is safe. You can have this kind of relationship with God—where you can be vulnerable because you know you are safe.
Safety is found in surrender. When you surrender to God, you declare that you trust him. You can be honest with Him about everything, exposing all your fears and failures to Him. He rejoices in your honesty. He doesn’t shame or condemn you. You belong to Him. God calls you to experience knowing Him. He has made the first move toward you with the finished work of the cross. He is waiting for your response.
God reveals things we need to let go of to experience His goodness. Surrendering to Him unlocks your heart to receive more from Him. It is the same as in marriage. Surrendering to your spouse allows intimacy to grow, and surrendering to God allows deeper intimacy.
“And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).
This is God’s promise. What God says He means. He doesn’t play games with you. He follows through with what He promises. But His promise involves your response. When you search for Him with all your heart, you will find Him. God desires all of you—not a spur-of-the-moment you. He doesn’t want you distracted by anything that keeps you from Him. God isn’t vague about you. His love for you is intentional, and He desires the same from you.
When you intentionally seek God, you will become so acutely aware of Him that your heart becomes interwoven with His. You will know without a doubt what breaks His heart because it breaks yours, and you will know what brings Him joy because it brings you joy.
Don’t you want to have a heart like this? A heart that is intimately one with His?
Paul writes in Philippians 3:10:
“That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.”
Every aspect of my life should revolve around knowing Jesus intimately and personally. In this verse, Paul takes knowing Jesus even further. Paul also wants to know the power that flowed from Jesus’ resurrection. I want a deep personal relationship with the Lord that releases His power through me into the lives of others. I can only find this relationship when I surrender completely to Him.
This is the intentional purpose Paul writes about in Philippians 3. Do I press on toward the goal of knowing Him? Do I surrender myself, my struggles, doubts, fears, and desires so that I might know God completely? The more I seek God, the more I know Him. The more I know God, the more He reveals to me.
Lord, I want to know you and the power of your resurrection. I don’t want to limit myself from receiving the best you have for me. I want your most profound truths to be revealed in my heart. I want my heart to mirror yours. Reveal each thing that holds me hostage to myself, and I will let it go. I pursue you, Jesus. I submit all I am. You are in me, and I am in you. I rest in your finished work. I am safe in my surrender to you.
—He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.”
—Psalms 91:1-2
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