Purpose Driven Life: Day 12

DEVELOPING FRIENDSHIP WITH GOD



POINT TO PONDER:

I am as close to God as I choose to be.


VERSE TO REMEMBER:

"Draw near to God and he will draw near to you."


RICK WARREN'S THOUGHTS:

If you want a deeper, more intimate connection with God, you must:

(i) learn to honestly share your feelings with him;
(ii) trust him when he asks you to do something;
(iii) learn to care about what he cares about; and
(iv) desire his friendship more than anything else.

The first building block of a deeper friendship with God is complete honesty--about your faults and your feelings. God doesn't expect you to be perfect, but he does insist on complete honesty.

Every time you trust God's wisdom and do whatever he says, even when you don't understand it, you deepen your friendship with God.

We obey God, not out of duty or fear or compulsion, but because we love him and trust that he knows what is best for us. We want to follow Christ out of gratitude for all he has done for us, and the closer we follow him, the deeper our friendship becomes.

"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete." [John 15:9-11]


D-MONK'S THOUGHTS:

To me, this desire for friendship may be the crux of spirituality. I don't believe simply to be saved, I don't worship because I have to. I believe and worship because of what Christ has done for me and out of a desire to know him better.

Warren's first step down this road is honesty with God. This is a little hard to grasp. If God knows all there is to know about me, what is the point of honest disclosure.

Honesty is a part of any relationship and growth. Honesty with God is how I grow as an individual. God doesn't need my honesty to know what I think or feel--I need my honesty in order to grow.

The desire to be closer to God all the time, to be intimate with God, has been much on my mind lately. I am an introvert by nature. I am somewhat challenged as to the emotional skills required to develop and grow friendships in any context. And I find myself struggling to build a friendship with God. How can I make him a part of all that I do?

In the end, though, I DO desire intimate friendship with God. I will keep trying to be honest with God and to invite him into my daily life.