“That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection,
and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death”—Philippians
3:10
At the beginning of a new year or anytime that we want to start over,
we have an opportunity to pursue a deeper relationship with Christ. No matter where you are in your walk with Christ,
it is never too late to begin seeking Him on a more intense level. Whether you are already passionate about
Jesus or know Him only on a surface level, everyone is welcome to join Paul and “Press on toward the goal for the prize of
the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). If you
are ready to begin to know Christ more
intimately, put into practice the following which will help you in your
journey.
1. Study to
Scripture to show yourself approved.
He speaks to us through His Word, revealing who He is and what He does.
2. Spend time alone with the Lord in prayer
and worship. Jesus withdrew from people to send time with the Father. Likewise, we develop a close relationship
with Jesus when we are willing to invest the time to get to know Him.
3. Rely on the Lord. The depth of any relationship depends on the
level of trust which is developed over time spent with Him.
4. Be obedient to Him. As we take each step of obedience, God
reveals more of Himself.
5. Heed how Christ works in your life. Paying attention to how the Lord operates,
you will become familiar with His ways and goals.
6. Make Jesus the greatest importance. Be willing to lay aside anything that
competes with your loyalty and devotion to Him.
Knowing
Christ intimately is an attainable goal.
These are some things that have helped me. Persistence—the
key is persistence, so forget past failures and press on. Thankful—because
I was go thankful to be delivered from drugs and alcohol, I yearned for an
intimate relationship with the One who loved me so much and I began to cultivate that type of relationship
with Christ. Examples—also, I found examples of whom I could follow through
reading books and then later through personal mentors who are inspirations to
me in my quest to know Christ intimately.
Prayer—Father
I lay down my preconceived ideas of who You are and I ask You to reveal
Yourself to me in a clearer and deeper way this year as I yield myself to You,
in Jesus Name. Amen.
