Relationship with God {devotional}

Melissa Tomko has graciously agreed to write us some devotionals.  I'm excited to see where the spirit leads in her writing and how she will encourage us to grow in our relationship with Him.  This is the first of such devos.  It might be good to have a journal handy as there will be some prompts to record what the spirit is speaking directly to you.  Enjoy!

Think about your typical day. Perhaps you work long hours. Maybe you are a mother of very young children who doesn’t get much sleep. You may have older kids who have homework and extracurricular activities. You might have volunteer commitments. Your average day may be something completely different or it may be a combination of all of the above. No matter what you do, your time is precious. We all have people and things that need our time and attention, whether they are husbands, children, activities or a career. These things can be equally rewarding and draining, and the one thing that can truly refresh is the thing that we often fail to adequately nurture. None of the other important things in our lives can really be done well without the most important thing – a thriving relationship with the Living God.

A single, male friend of mine recently shared that he was discouraged and emotionally spent, so he was “going off the grid” and leaving town for a few days to be in solitude with Jesus. Can you relate to how he feels? Unfortunately for many women, being in solitude with Christ for days at a time is simply not an option. However, just because we can’t get away for a long personal retreat with the Lord doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t look for quiet moments in our day to be with Him, talk with Him, and be refreshed by His presence in our life. Doing so is following the example of Christ Himself, who often sought solitary places to pray, even during busy times of ministry.

Read Mark 1:35, Matthew 14:23, and Luke 5:16. Ask God to help you learn to follow Christ’s example of “coming away” during the busyness of life. Record what He might be telling you.

The pursuit of a relationship with God is a lifelong process. In the book The Pursuit of God A.W. Tozer reminds us that the desire to pursue God is in us because God first pursued us:

“We pursue God because, and only because, He has first put an urge within us that spurs

us to the pursuit. ‘No man can come to me,’ said our Lord, ‘except the Father which hath

sent me draw him,’ and it is by this very prevenient drawing that God takes us from every

vestige of credit for the act of coming. The impulse to pursue God originates with God,

but the outworking of that impulse is our following hard after Him; and all the time we

are pursuing Him we are already in His hand: ‘Thy right hand upholdeth me.’”

If we have truly tasted the goodness of God we will naturally long for more. We do not have to keep pursuing for the sake of our salvation but simply for the joy and satisfaction and fullness of knowing Him more. God’s personal nature requires conscious effort to cultivate a relationship, yet so often this most important relationship is the one we most neglect. Developing strong, positive relationships with our husbands, children, friends and co-workers is so important, but those efforts are in vain if we are not first pursuing a relationship with God .

“Our calling as children of God is to know Him, first and foremost. As Os Guinness

Writes, ‘It’s not about you. It’s about the one who calls you.’ Our primary calling is to be

with God, to immerse ourselves in His immeasurable love and grace. Everything else

flows out of this connection, which is our absolute number on priority.”

The Missional Mom (p. 19-20)

It is when we are firmly planted in the Lord that we will flourish and bear the most fruit in other areas of life.

Read Jeremiah 17:7-8. Ask God to show you how to be so deeply planted in Him that you will bear fruit in the driest of times. Record your thoughts.

Many places in Scripture encourage us to actively pursue an intimate relationship with God. Deuteronomy 6:5 says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” It is hard to love someone with that kind of depth and intensity if we are not intentionally pursuing a relationship with them. David is a wonderful example of someone who continued to pursue God in good times and bad. The Psalms are full of verses describing a close, personal relationship with the Father.

Take some time to meditate on these verses, let them encourage you to intentionally pursue your God with all your heart, soul, and strength, and share what God is teaching you below.

Psalm 63:1-8

Psalm 42 (David is going through a trial, yet he continues to thirst for God and praise Him.)

Psalm 27:8

Psalm 73:21-26

Spend some time praying over these Scriptures, talking to the Living God and listening for Him to speak into your heart. We cannot get through this life without complete reliance on God. Jesus tells us that “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God,” (Matthew 4:4).

Father, thank you for pursuing me first. I want the pursuit of a deeper relationship with you to be a lifelong goal. I pray that I would not become stagnant, but that I would always actively seek you and let your Word guide my life.