ENGAGING GOD

Genesis 28:15-17

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15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought,
"Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it." 17 He was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven."

John 4:21-24 (The Message)
"Believe me, woman, the time is coming when you Samaritans will worship the Father neither here at this mountain nor there in Jerusalem. You worship guessing in the dark; we Jews worship in the clear light of day. God's way of salvation is made available through the Jews. But the time is coming—it has, in fact, come—when what you're called will not matter and where you go to worship will not matter.
"It's who you are and the way you live that count before God. Your worship must engage your spirit in the pursuit of truth. That's the kind of people the Father is out looking for: those who are simply and honestly themselves before Him in their worship. God is sheer being itself—Spirit. Those who worship Him must do it out of their very being, their spirits, their true selves, in adoration." [emphasis added]

Our God is an 'engaging' God. This week - that word came up in one of my Bible studies and I have been throwing out a challenge to all those I teach this week:
"Look for the ways in which God 'engages' with you this week. And note the ways you respond to Him when He does. "

You have to be open and looking [upward is a good place to start] - aware of God's 'engaging' Presence. He will 'engage' with you in many ways - sometimes in a sunset - in a song - watching the stars at night - a bird that lands in your path - or when a passage of Scripture jumps off the page and God speaks back to you the very thing you just questioned in your mind. THAT is our God! Does that happen for you just every once in a while - or - does it happen often every day? I ask that because God desires to 'engage' with us - and us with Him - often and daily.
That's what our 'personal relationship' with Him is all about.

For me, it got intense and remains so when just over two years ago I fell in love with Exodus 33 where Moses asks God to see His glory. God was pleased to show Moses what He could [without killing him] and Moses was one who was not afraid to ask. So - I decided that I would ask for God to show me His glory too. What did I have to lose?
When He 'engages' with me like that - it shows me the security of His love for me in such a deep abiding way that all fears, anxieties and insecurities fade away. He is awesome God.

Looking Upward and Choosing JOY,
Stephanie
[Led by the Spirit]......... Photo: Red-Tailed Hawk that appeared on my back porch on Sunday!