Dinner Date With God

     Life is so filled with busyness, it can cause us to resist the quietness.  As the silence emerges our hearts begin to panic, this experience isn't the norm.  We are unsure how to respond or act so we get back to what we know: busyness.  Oh, our souls hunger for rest, stillness, and peace but it seems so far out of reach.  Do you realize this is what Jesus died for?

At this present moment, I "feel" very far from God although I know the truth of God's Word, "He will never leave me, fail me, or forsake me."  Psalm 119:50 says, "My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life." Nevertheless, my heart just aches to be alone in the presence of God where His love can surround me.  With a new job, different hours, persuing my calling, and family responsibilites my life seems very hectic.  Even through all of my daily chaos, my soul cries out for rest. The voice of God calls us to enter His rest but we seem to resist it with gritted teeth.  In Psalm 23:1-2, "He MAKES me lie down in green pastures, he LEADS me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul.  In this favorite psalm, we learn some very important truths: God longs to lead us to places of solitude to restore our souls.  Keep in mind, God created rest for a reason, He knew we needed it.  We all need those times of refreshing, we can't give what we don't have.

     In our prayer time or Bible study, we can quickly get into a habit of just performing the duties without connecting to God.  "Oh, I did my Bible study today, I am good."  I have a question, "Did you hear God's voice at all?"  Now I understand those moments where the prayers don't feel like they are reaching heaven.  "Are you allowing God to speak to you or giving Him the time too?"  If we don't, we are missing some valueable moments of reassurance, grace, and love.  Our attitudes towards our devotional time needs to change so we can receive it's sweet exchanges of love.
     Song of songs is a beautiful metaphor of God's desire for the Bride, the church.  Solomon and his lover have intimate exchanges, communication, and passionate desires for the other.  In the relationship if one party is absent, they will search all night until their love is united.  Nothing can satisfy the longing of their heart until their hearts are one. 
     Isn't it interesting, Jesus prayed for our relationship to be similiar to His father's: one.  In the creation story, Adam and Eve were created for each other but to become one flesh.  Our relationship with God needs to have loving exchanges with each other.  Our prayer time can easily become a "honey do list" instead of a beautiful dinner date.  While I was dating my husband, I couldn't wait just for the opportunity to glance at him, to touch his hands, and enjoy being near him.  Throughout the dinner date, we would laugh, share our dreams, kisses, and just hold hands.  We cherished the exchange of being loved by someone and it being returned.  So, when was the last time you enjoyed a dinner date with God?  He has the banquet table all preapred, He just waiting for us to arrive.  Oh, it's going to be a beautiful dinner date with the One we love.  I can hardly wait, how about you?