Do you know God?

Over the past few weeks I have been consumed by the idea of transformational knowledge. This involves the knowing OF not merely knowing ABOUT (David G. Benner). Let me start with an example that might help explain this idea.

If I was best friends with Kelly Clarkson (first of all that would be cool), I would really know her, right? Just like with anyone who is your best friend, you spend time together and eventually get to know each other on a deeper level. Now say someone came up to me and said, “Hey I know that Kelly is 5’2, she won American idol in 2002, and she has 2 kids.” I might respond by saying that I too knew those things about her, but if I was her best friend I would know a lot more than just those facts about her. I would really KNOW her. Are you with me?

The same goes for knowing God. It’s not about how many facts you know about Him, how many years of Bible School you’ve completed, how many hours you’ve spent reading theology books, or if you know all of the books of the Bible in order; it’s about relationship!!

Another example: I call my mom pretty much everyday or at least every other day while I live in Thailand and when I call I don’t ask her to give me facts about herself. That would be weird like: “Hey mom, when did you graduate college? What size shoe do you wear? What grocery store do you like the best?” Even though, yes I do know all the answers to these questions, it’s not what the foundation of our relationship is built on. Thank God for that because I would be missing out on a lot of who she REALLY is if I was focused on just the facts of her life.

I hope at this point you are understanding what I’m saying, but I also hope you’re not misunderstanding. I believe it is very important and essential to study the word of God and to know as much as you possibly can about Him. I am simply saying don’t let that be the ONLY way you “know” Him. Know Him by personal experience.

For me it looks like just sharing my moments of weeping and my moments of joy with Him. Praising Him always, but also being willing to bring the hard things to His feet knowing that he cares for them and cares for me. It can also be through being aware of Him in the little moments of life like when I water my plants or wash my laundry. Noticing how sweet His presence is even in the mundane and see what he might be saying to me in it.

Through knowing Him in relationship you can come to know him in a way that is transformational. A way that will change you because He is changing you, by giving you the desires of HIS heart. It won’t be that you’re forcing yourself to be obedient because the Bible tells you should, you’ll be obedient because you WANT to be, because you desire to honor the Lord in all you do, because you trust Him, because you LOVE him.

Knowing God and experiencing Him on a personal level has been the greatest joy of my life. There’s simply no way to describe what it’s like to love and be loved by your Creator. I pray that you might also learn to know God in a way that is unique and personal and that it would draw you into a closer relationship with Him.