God’s gift . . .

The Relationship God Desires

“See what great love the Father has lavished on us,
that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!”
1 John 3:1 

God’s desire is for us to know Him fully, deeply, and personally . . .  this invitation occurs throughout the Bible . . . God is not waiting for us to mess up . . . He already knows that we’re going to do something wrong . . . God is not waiting to punish any one of us, because Jesus was punished in our place . . . He just wants each of us to enjoy a personal, close, living relationship with Him. 

Because it is God’s desire that we know Him, this needs to be something that we take the time to do . . . really focus on intentionally . . .  This isn’t something that is just going to happen, we need to seek a relationship with God. 

Remember, God doesn’t just want us to only know about Him.  . . . He wants us to know Him . . . to really get to know Him . . . to understand His goodness . . . and to fall more and more in love with Him . . . As we walk with God through prayer and reading His Word, He’s always willing to reveal Himself  . . . Amazingly, He wants us to want to be with Him as much as He wants to be with us. 

Do you believe you know God, or do you just know about Him?

What does it mean to you to know God?

Let your thoughts go beyond ‘knowing about’ God and consider this . . .
What does your daily life reveal, to yourself and others, about your living, breathing relationship with our Lord? 

Prayer is a direct line to God . . . It develops a relationship with our living Father that lasts a lifetime and beyond . . . Prayer can change you in ways that you never thought possible . . . Pray now, for wisdom and understanding of your relationship with God . . . and ask God to lift your heart and fill it with unspeakable joy.  

“Joyful is the person who finds wisdom, the one who gains understanding.
For wisdom is more profitable than silver, and her wages are better than gold.”
Proverbs 3:13-14 

As you read and pray today, focus on each question, Scripture, definition, picture, song, and thought . . . and pray! . . . If it helps you, write down or journal as you journey through the days. . . There are no right or wrong answers because all God asks for is an honest relationship with you . . . God can and will help you handle anything, if you let Him. 

Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?
(Corrie Ten Boom) 

Pray, talk, walk, and listen . . . Take some time for God with God . . . it will be worth it! 

“ So, keep on trying to know the Lord. His coming to us is as sure as the rising of the sun.
He will come to us like the rain, like the spring rain giving water to the earth.”
Hosea 6:3
 

INSIGHT . . . 

So . . . What does it mean to have a personal relationship with God? 

A relationship is the way two or more people are connected, or how they behave toward each other . . . so a relationship with God involves how deeply you relate to our Lord, and how you and God interact with one another. 

Having a personal relationship with God begins the moment we realize our need for Him, admit we are sinners, and receive Jesus Christ as Savior through faith . . . God has always desired to be close to us, to have that personal relationship with us. 

Before Adam sinned in the Garden of Eden, both he and Eve knew God on a close, personal level . . . They walked with Him in the garden and talked directly to Him . . . Due to the sin of man, we became separated and disconnected from God . . . but Jesus bridged the gap between us and God . . . Through His death on the cross our sins were bought and paid for . . . providing the opportunity for us to have a personal relationship with God . . . and to  spend eternity with Him, if we believe and trust in our Lord.

INVITATION—TO TALK WITH GOD . . . 

God’s love is honestly and faithfully unconditional  . . .  He will never fail you or betray you   . . . Though people may let you down, life may be painful, or lonely, God will always be there for you  . . .  We never need to hold back in our relationship with Him, because God is perfectly trustworthy. 

“Lord Almighty, blessed is the one who trusts in you.”
Psalm 84:12 

When we try to talk with God, focus can be a difficult thing to accomplish with the world ‘buzzing incessantly’ in your ear . . . PAUSE . . . for just a moment and try to listen beyond the demanding world around you . . . It’s hard to listen to God, pray, or even sit still, when anger, hurt, chaos, sorrow, or distractions blare in the heart, mind, and soul . . . Think about it this way . . . each of these is just one of the devil’s many tools of agitation and distraction, making you doubt yourself, feel isolated, and creating chaos in your mind.  

John Ortberg writes, “Being deeply contented with God in my everyday life is a focused attitude. It is always available. It means practicing letting go of my obsession with how I'm doing. It means training myself to learn to actually be present.” 

Life gets in the way of talking with God . . . grocery lists, projects, the telephone, the list goes on and on . . . To help you focus, keep paper and pen beside you, write down what is pulling you away from God, and then you can set it aside for later . . . Be present in your life and relationship with God . . . He is always present for you. 

Is “life” creating a wall of distance or isolation between you and God?

Is the “noise” around you too loud, disruptive, frustrating?

Is the clock ticking too fast for you to find time for you and God?

Ask God to help you focus, recognize distractions, and help you put the chaos and “noise” aside, so that you can spend quality time with Him. 

“May God give you more and more grace and peace 
as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord.”
2 Peter 1:2

ILLUMINATION . . .

Consider this for a moment . . . Fortune cookies . . . an interesting  ‘conversation piece’ that is
often introduced at the end of a meal . . . A fortune cookie is a crisp, sugary cookie made from
flour, sugar, vanilla, and sesame seed oil with a piece of paper inside. The papers have been known
to be funny, prophetic, vague, and just plain weird. 

What if there was a special fortune cookie—one that was filled with a Word from God . . . A Scripture placed there just for you when you need to hear it, that no one recognizes until the cookie is cracked open . . . The Word of God and God’s guidance is the source of our strength, wisdom, courage, peace, mercy, grace, joy, and so much more.  

Imagine that fortune cookie . . . sitting in front of you . . . ready to be opened . . . ready to give you a taste of His Word . . . only God knows what is inside . . . only God knows just what you need to hear. 

What do you think He would be telling you with that cookie?

What Scripture message is in your cookie?

What joy would He place in your hands in a new and different way?

What guidance is He whispering in your ear right now? 

“The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.
My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.”
Psalm 28:7 

INSPIRATION—PRAYING THROUGH MUSIC . . . 

“Be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and
 spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart.”
Ephesians 5:18b-19

I encourage you to take time to listen to any or all the songs below . . . there is no right or wrong style of music—it is what speaks to you . . . listen to the melody and the lyrics and feel the response of your heart to what God wants you to hear . . . and I do understand that music doesn’t speak to everyone . . . and that is okay too. 

♪♬♪ Current . . . Good, Good Father

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfeZw1ZB_2g&list=RDlfeZw1ZB_2g&start_radio=1
 

♪♬♪ Traditional . . . Great is Thy Faithfulness

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iDuMoA9lxE&list=RD_iDuMoA9lxE&start_radio=1

INTO EACH DAY AHEAD . . . 

Some people pray just to pray,
and some people pray to know God.
(Andrew Murray) 

When life’s journey gets a little rocky, turn your palms upward and imagine catching cleansing, falling rain drops in your hands . . . Let the water wash the dust and dirt away, allowing the joy to come to the surface of your life again . . . allowing you to truly “feel” the presence of God in your life. 

Slow down when the chaos begins to take control . . . Take deep breaths in and release slow, long breaths out . . . listening to your heart, mind, soul, and physical body.  

Can you feel or hear your heartbeat?

Can you feel the blood pulsing through your veins?

Do you hear your knees crackle a bit?  

All these are reminders that you are alive!! . . . and if you are alive, you can have a living, breathing, personal relationship with God . . . the relationship that He desires to have with you. 

Heavenly Father, today we close with 2 Corinthians 13:11, saying

 “Dear brothers and sisters, I close my letter with these last words: Be joyful.
Grow to maturity. Encourage each other. Live in harmony and peace.
Then the God of love and peace will be with you.”—Amen. 
 

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Prayer Paths is a weekly email letter designed to “fuel”
your active prayer life, help you stay engaged in
focused prayer, and encourage a
growing relationship with our Triune God. 

To receive Prayer Paths each week—send a request,
with your name and email,
to BarnabasRoad2025@gmail.com 

(Prayer Paths is offered through Barnabas Road Ministries)