Cultivating Intimacy with the Lord

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” John 10:27 (NIV)

You can live your life at a distance relationally and experience the absence of meaningful relationships with others. The relational deficit will soon erode your joy and remove your smile. God made us for relationships.

The shepherd and sheep relationship is very prominent in the Bible. Dependent on the shepherd’s care, the sheep learns to respond to the shepherd’s voice. There is a connection that develops through the consistent exposure to the voice of compassion and concern.

• “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53:6 (NIV)
• “For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” 1 Peter 2:25 (NIV)

Jesus is the Shepherd of our souls. He took on the full wrath of God for our sin. Jesus invites us into an intimate love relationship that is personal and eternal. We participate in the cultivation of that relationship once we turn from our sin and turn to Christ alone for salvation. Each day as we spend time in prayer and Bible reading, the love relationship deepens and our faith increases.

Learn to recognize the voice of Truth. God speaks to us in alignment with His Word and His will. You will hear the still small voice of the Lord speaking to you as you practice His Presence throughout each day. Be sensitive to the prompting of the Holy Spirit living in you. Tune out the noise of worry and worldliness and tune in to the voice of the One who sought you and bought you with His own blood.

Pursuing God,

Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor
Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell