I know a person who embarked on a wild adventure with God. He used to go around the country speaking about it and trying to convince others. He advocated going to a quiet spot somewhere out in nature where you could pray vocally to God, and to see if you could pray for half hour every day. I remember wondering how he could justify leaving his wife and ten children home in the mornings while he went off to pray, but oh well, I tried it too. Three things happened. Yes….
- I definitely did develop a personal relationship with my Savior.
- I felt dumb when a neighbor happened to see me kneeling beside my favorite tree along the road where I walked.
- My family started to complain about breakfast not being ready on time because I would be gone when they got out of bed.
- I started looking at others who probably weren’t praying like I was, and suppose I did place myself up on a pedestal. I felt like I was the one having the personal relationship, and since no one else was, yes, I was special.
I tried it some time later at night after everyone was in bed. I would go into the office, sit on the recliner, and pray until I was able to connect to the one thing that was not amis. I was trying to prove the scripture which said if you prayed not amis your prayer would be answered. To me that meant what was in accordance with God’s will, or one with God. I found that it was possible to do with effort, but after awhile I got lazy. Actually I think what happened was I learned that along with relationship came greater trials, and somewhere along the line the house burned down, and I lost my cozy chair in the office. But I had planted it there for another purpose, one which God did not sanction, and that’s another story.
Although that happened fifteen years ago, I can still remember some of those prayers, and some of the wonderful things that happened as a result, and also some of the not so wonderful things that happened. So, I would highly recommend to anyone that wants to know of the reality of God to try it for a couple of weeks or a month and see for yourself. Trust me when I say it will be a wild adventure.
I think in a sense this is what Dena is going through now. She and I seem to be on a similar journey, with me about 10 years (older) ahead?. We both have eight children, our birthdays are a day apart, our dad’s birthdays are near the same day. Our journeys are different, because we are on different paths, but similar in that we are on journeys of discovery, where we want to learn for ourselves the basic concepts of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Years later I read an article criticizing this gentleman that taught me how to gain a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. here. I am sorry that some left the mainstream of the church because of it. Since that time I have learned there is more safety in the mainstream than there is when you are perched up on the highest limb, and that it’s ok to flow with the mainstream. God wants to hear from us morning and night in prayer. He likes us to say the blessing on the food before we eat, and he likes us to open and close each meeting with prayer, just a short, simple, direct prayer. He wants us to stay in tune with His Holy Spirit all the time so that we can capture the moments that count. His spirit is here to guide us constantly, and as long as we’re not trying to live our life from both ends at the same time, there will be no conflict. What I mean is that you can’t be planning to kill someone while you’re dealing in drugs, or planning an affair while you are holding a family together, and on the other side wonder why God isn’t answering your prayers. Although God will meet you at the depths of your despair if you reach for Him, and He will guide you out of any hole if you exercise your faith in Him, it is not easy. God loves everyone no matter who we are or what we’ve done, and anyone can believe. But there are conditions that are attached to having the Holy Ghost as a constant companion.
To quote a friend, “I’ve done the best I know how to do, to relay, in mere limited words, what it is that I”ve come to believe. It’s a journey, over much time, with many experiencees, and really, what I’d love to do, is not to convince you of what *I* believe, but to inspire you to launch into a deep and wild adventure with God, of your own.”
My fear is that I won’t be understood, so if there are any who might be reading this who think I don’t know God or think that I believe in the wrong Jesus, as I know some think, here are some links: link link link link
The blogosphere is an interesting place to dwell. You can find as many different ideas and ideologies as sands by the sea. If anyone out there on the sea shore happens across my little hill, I would be interested in knowing about your wild adventure with God.
