Friday, September 26, 2008

Chapter 10 - Cultivating Intimacy


Going Deeper With Your Prince
"You will ask me, are you satisfied? Have you got all you want? God forbid. With the deepest feeling of my soul I can say that I am satisfied with Jesus now; but there is also the consciousness of how much fuller the revelation can be of the exceeding abundance of His grace. Let us never hesitate to say, this is only the beginning." Andrew Murray

Don't Settle For Less

"...We do not have to live according to the mediocre standards of the world around us."

The world around us (TV, magazines etc.) say that husbands are simply cavemen and singleness is a disease that MUST be cured, no matter cost. However, marriage and singleness can be a bit of heaven on earth if we persue the best that God has for us and never settle for less.

"When our Prince is the center of our existence, the possibilities are fathomless. Life becomes an exciting, endless adventure. Don't ever settle for less."

Come Closer

"The [one] who would know God must give time to Him." A.W. Tozer

Preparing and protecting our inner sanctuary, as we have discussed in the past chapters, is only the beginning of nurturing true intimacy with our prince. Just as it takes effort to nurture intimacy in a marriage, we must make the effort to grow closer to our Lord.

Practical Steps for Cultivating Intimacy With Our Prince:

Become a Student of His Word. Truly study the Bible. Leslie Ludy suggests cross referenceing Bible versions, or looking up significant-sounding words in a Bible concordance.

Develop the Art of Journaling. Often times when I pray (and Leslie said she had this problem too) I start off ok, then my prayers gradually morph into mental lists of what I should be doing that day, or replaying events in my head. Its hard to stay on track! A prayer journal is a wonderful way to keep your prayers strong and you'll even be able to look back later and see where God has answered your prayers.

Discover Christian Literature. The older the better, find encouragement through Christian biographies from people who have gone before you.

1 comment:

Nicole Marie said...

Hi! My name is Nicole Marie. I was searching online somewhere to copy the "Practical Steps for cultivating intimacy with our Prince" and paste it in a blog! I found yours, I love it! So I hope you don't mind me using it, I want everyone to know that they can have a deeper relationship with Christ! It is so awesome to see another young woman searching for it and experiencing it. It seems all around me no one cares and they think my standards are out of wack. But I don't care! I'm sure you know what I mean! :) Well Maybe we can begin to be friends and chat back and forth! My e-mil is nm_barnett@hotmail.com.