For many people, hearing the phrase “we need to talk” is somewhat terrifying. It equates in their minds to being in trouble, an invasion of privacy, and a need to disclose uncomfortable feelings and emotions that they would rather not air. Still, communication is absolutely vital to maintaining healthy relationships.
When it comes to talking with God, it becomes even more complicated. Recently I had posted the following quote by Timothy Keller to my Facebook page regarding Job’s often rather “in-your-face” challenges to God: Job 42:7-9
“Why would God be so affirming of Job? Job cursed the day he was born, challenged God’s wisdom, cried out and complained bitterly, expressed deep doubts…Through it all, Job never stopped praying. Yes, he complained, but he complained to God. He doubted, but he doubted to God. He screamed and yelled, but he did it in God’s presence. No matter how much in agony he was, he continued to address God. He kept seeking Him. And in the end, God said Job triumphed.”(1)
The story does not really end there though, because God knew that Job’s perceptions about Him were incorrect so after affirming that Job was still in right relationship with Him, He sat him down and gave him a lesson. Job 40:1-2, 1 The Lord said to Job, 2 “Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him? Let him who accuses God answer him!”
After God had revealed Himself to Job in all the glory of His creation, Job had a more correct perspective on Himself and the God of the universe.
Then Job answered the LORD and said: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted…Therefore, I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know…I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:1-6 ESV)
That cosmic “attitude adjustment” is not really the point of this blog. Rather it is that this same overwhelmingly powerful God Job finally “saw” wants to communicate with us. It is there in the scriptures repeatedly!
Isaiah 1:18, “Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.
In other words, God was saying, “let’s talk about the things that separate you and me. I can take them away so that we can be in a free, open, unhindered relationship.”
He even went beyond through the Holy Spirit to promise to be with us available 24/7. Unlike what we experience within our frail and flawed human relationships, He will never be stand-offish or cold; whether or not we can perceive or feel Him, He is there!
Amplified John 14:16, “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor. Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, and Standby), that He may remain with you forever-
Then He says, talk to me!
Call, Isaiah 65:24,
Ask, Matthew 7:7-11
Pray, Ephesians 6:18
So, my goal for this New Year is to come when He calls, to sit at His feet like Mary, and to talk to Him!
Brother Lawrence, a monk who lived in the 1600’s, described it this way, “a habitual, silent, and secret conversation of the soul with God.”
He goes on to describe coming before God in confession as if before a king.
“This King, full of mercy and goodness, very far from chastening me, embraces me with love, invites me to feast at His table, serves me with His own hands, and gives me the keys to His treasures. He converses with me, and takes delight in me, and treats me as if I were His favorite.” (2)
I do not think I have ever felt like I was truly someone’s favorite…
Maybe the Father and I should talk about that.
(1) Keller, Timothy. Walking with God Through Pain & Suffering. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 2013.
(2) Foster, Richard J. and James Bryan Smith, Devotional Classics. New York: HarperCollins, 1993