My planning retreat ends today. Each year, I spend a few days away alone recalibrating and planning for the year to come. One of the things I work on is my life mission, which starts with knowing God.
What does that mean, exactly – to know God?
I used to think it meant living a moral life. In the Bible, our connection to God is repeatedly described as a marriage. If we think in these terms, living a moral life is like a wedding ring. It’s a symbol of our devotion; a tangible reminder of who (and whose) we are. It’s a visible deterrent to would-be lovers who might otherwise seek our attention. It testifies to our commitment.
But living a moral life isn’t the extent of knowing God any more than wearing a wedding ring is the extent of being married. It’s a sign, but not the substance.
At times I’ve assumed that knowing God meant feeling spiritual. Spiritual feelings are like the best moments of a marriage: flashes of physical intimacy and romantic euphoria. They’re powerful installments of togetherness.
But anyone who’s been married any length of time knows these moments are more exception than rule. In the same way, spiritual feelings aren’t the same as knowing God. They’re a spark, but not the substance.
Finally, for a while I imagined knowing God meant accumulating knowledge. Certainly the more I’ve learned about the person I’m married to, the closer we’ve become. More of her life data is always emerging, like puzzle pieces that when placed together reveal her character more clearly.
But there’s a difference between knowing a great deal about someone and knowing them. Accumulating knowledge isn’t the same as knowing God. It’s a step, but not the substance.
Knowing God includes all of these things but is limited to none of them. It isn’t anything that can be captured in a single term or phrase. It’s a blend of purity and passion, a headlong rush into moments of mystery and a deep contentment with stretches of monotony.
Like marriage, knowing God is learning more every day while being at peace with what one still does not know. It’s sacrificing and experiencing and growing; it’s failing and rebelling and forgetting. It’s all of this in the safety of a relationship you both know will still be intact tomorrow, whatever comes.
Do you know God? Or have you settled for living a moral life?
Do you know God? Or are you just caught up with spiritual feelings?
Do you know God? Or are you satisfied with merely accumulating knowledge?
There’s no simple step of practical application. I just want to stir you to settle for nothing less than really knowing him.
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him… (II Peter 1:3 – NLT).
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