Keys to the Kingdom
Both of my kids are in their 30s and married. But when they come home, it’s like they’ve never left. If they want something to eat or drink, they open the refrigerator or snack cabinet and take whatever suits their fancy. And that’s the way I want it and that’s the way it should be…at least where I come from. There’s a comfortable and loving feeling in making yourself at home. But in order to “make yourself at home” you have to have an up-close and personal relationship with the homeowner.
Too many believers admire God from afar. But He wants our relationship with Him to be genuine and intimate. In Jesus’ earthly life we can see the close relationship He had with His heavenly Father. Jesus spent a lot of time in prayer seeking direction before choosing the disciples, asking for comfort after John the Baptist was beheaded, etc. He depended on His Father to strengthen, console, and speak to Him. Jesus took time out from life’s routine to be alone with God. It’s not our natural tendency to be quiet before the Lord, but Jesus had victory because He fellowshipped with God. And the same is true for us.
Don’t let your sins, failures, or weaknesses come between you and your heavenly Father. God never moves away from us and Jesus never stops interceding for you. When the prodigal son took his inheritance and moved to a distant land, the father stayed right where he was. Day after day, He watched and longed for his son to return home. “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him…. His father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet. …We must celebrate with a feast, for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began” (Luke 15:20, 22-24 NLT). Even though the son made every wrong and stupid choice he possibly could, he finally came to his senses and made the decision to go back home. I imagine he had to step away from the loud, distracting, and obnoxious noises of the pigpen to hear God‘s tender voice of direction.
It’s important to understand that the son confessed his sins, failures, and weaknesses to his loving father. “His son said to him, ’Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son‘” (Luke 15:21 NLT). Sweeping sin under the rug will not bring the forgiveness we need in order to have an up-close and personal relationship with our merciful Father.
In the Old Testament, the Lord whispered to Elijah. “And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And a voice said, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’” (1 Kings 19:11-13 NLT).
The Key: If you want to feel at home with your heavenly Father, stay close enough to hear Him whisper.