{"id":9321,"date":"2013-02-21T00:01:42","date_gmt":"2013-02-21T05:01:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/?p=9321"},"modified":"2013-02-20T15:02:06","modified_gmt":"2013-02-20T20:02:06","slug":"captivating-chapter-7-cultivating-intimacy-pgs-127-129","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/2013\/02\/21\/captivating-chapter-7-cultivating-intimacy-pgs-127-129\/","title":{"rendered":"Captivating: Chapter 7 – Cultivating Intimacy (pp 127-129)"},"content":{"rendered":"

We live in a very busy world.\u00a0 I know I can personally attest to that.\u00a0 We look at our schedule or our smartphone and we see “the list.”\u00a0 We wonder if we will have time to get from work to appointment A on time, and then will there be time to eat\u00a0before class B starts?\u00a0 There is work, friends, family, ourselves…oh! and God.\u00a0 Where do you put yourself on that list? \u00a0More importantly, where do you put God?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The key to enhancing your relationship with God is a simple one.\u00a0 You need to spend time with Him.<\/strong>\u00a0 Think about it, it makes perfect sense.\u00a0 If you have an acquaintance you want to get to know better, what do you do?\u00a0 You talk to them, hang out with them, get to know them, and possibly become friends.\u00a0 If you have a man you are interested in, you date them, talk to them, learn more about them, and it can possibly lead to a more intimate relationship.\u00a0 Isn’t that what we want?\u00a0 Intimacy with our Lord?<\/p>\n

What exactly is intimacy?\u00a0 According to Dictionary.com intimacy is\u00a0 <\/strong>“a close, familiar, and usually affectionate or loving personal relationship with another person or group<\/strong>.”<\/em>\u00a0 Yes!\u00a0 That is what I want!\u00a0 I want an affectionate, loving, personal relationship with God!\u00a0 And the amazing thing is that it is ours for the taking!<\/em><\/strong><\/span>\u00a0 He offers it freely and with no strings.\u00a0 All we have to do is spend time with Him, and it’s ours.\u00a0 Wait.\u00a0 Spend time with Him.\u00a0 Time? \u00a0Who has that to spare?\u00a0 That in it’s essence is the problem. \u00a0God doesn’t deserve our “spare time.”\u00a0 God deserves to be a priority.\u00a0 He should be coming first on that daily to-do list.\u00a0 No exceptions, no excuses.\u00a0 I know…I get it…I am a single mom.\u00a0 I have to-do lists as long as my arm and leg.\u00a0 I run my home. \u00a0I run ministries. \u00a0I have my own business.\u00a0 Trust me, I get it!<\/p>\n

Sometimes we have to get creative<\/em> with our time, and sometimes we need to get out of our comfort zones<\/em>.\u00a0 I am not a morning person by any stretch of the imagination.\u00a0 But at the same time, I am exhausted by the end of the day, so I had to make a decision.\u00a0 What I do is get up at 5:30 in the morning so I can have my quiet time with the Lord before I have to get my son up for school and the craziness of the day begins.\u00a0 Do I LIKE getting up that early?\u00a0 No.\u00a0\u00a0No matter how long I have been doing it, it’s still no fun when that alarm goes off.\u00a0 But is the tradeoff worth it?\u00a0 Without a doubt!\u00a0<\/strong> That quiet time with God is what sets my day straight.\u00a0 There may be a day I miss, and it may not seem like too big of a deal, but let that one morning turn into 2 or 3, or even more, and it only means trouble.\u00a0 I can feel a difference.\u00a0 Something will be nagging at me, or I will\u00a0feel burdened and I won’t know why until I realize that it has been 4 days since I spent time with God, and then it’s like “Duh! No wonder!!” \u00a0It makes a difference.<\/strong><\/p>\n

So now I ask you to look in the mirror. \u00a0Where has God been on your list of priorities? \u00a0No matter the answer, there is a beautiful reality. \u00a0It’s ok. \u00a0Whether He has been at number one, or He has been relegated to “if I have time,” God is still there, He is still waiting for you. \u00a0He is not mad, or standing with a checklist checking off how many days you have spent with Him. He is just waiting for you to come back. \u00a0He loves you!<\/strong> He longs to spend that time with you, and He will delight in you the very second you return to Him. \u00a0That is so comforting to me. \u00a0If you don’t already, I hope you will set aside the time you need to spend with Your Father. \u00a0The change you will feel will be worth it. \u00a0Intimacy with Our Savior? \u00a0What could be better?<\/p>\n